


The Deepest Hearts

by littlesleepingbird



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Group Marriage, Marriage Law Challenge, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-28
Updated: 2018-12-02
Packaged: 2019-07-03 13:23:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 32,716
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15819753
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littlesleepingbird/pseuds/littlesleepingbird
Summary: Four years after the war, a mysterious meeting is held at the Ministry for Magic. A crisis is revealed. New laws are unveiled. What does the Magical Genetic Matching spell hold for Hermione Granger?





	1. Chapter 1

**Hey friends!**

This is my first fanfic, and I would love constructive feedback on how you feel the story is going, any issues with dialogue or grammar, etc... as long as you're nice about it!  
I found the inspiration for this story while reading Pax Matrum by loubug14, which is a wonderful Dramione that I encourage you to read! The idea of the mysterious Ministry of Magic meeting was taken directly from that story (and used with permission!) and I hope you enjoy my take on the Marriage Law trope!

I don't have a beta reader, so I imagine they'll be some small issues with grammar or punctuation here and there, please be patient! Let me know if you see it and I'd be happy to fix it :).

**ENJOY!**

* * *

_Dear Miss Granger,_

_The Ministry of Magic requires your presence for a confidential briefing tomorrow morning, Monday, June 9th, 2002._   
_This briefing will be held in Conference Room A, attached to the Minister of Magic's office, and will begin at precisely 9:00 AM._

_Because of the confidential nature of this meeting, we cannot verify the topic or other attendants._

_Yours Sincerely,_

_Kingsley Shacklebolt_

_Minister of Magic - Order of Merlin, First Class._

Hermione stared blankly at the parchment in front of her, curious but wary. The war against Voldemort had ended just over four years prior, and Hermione had been working for the Department of Magical Law Enforcement since finishing her Eighth Year at Hogwarts.

It had been expected that she would train to be an Auror with Harry and Ron, but Hermione found her passion in litigation and law proposals. She worked her way from an internship to Assistant Head of the MLE Department. In her years in the MLE, not only had she represented high profile clients, including Draco Malfoy, who was released from Azkaban after two years, but she had also written many important laws and legislation that had been voted into effect through the Wizengamot.

Hermione felt like she knew almost everything that happened at the Ministry, between her work as an attorney and being a personal friend and confidant to the Minister. But she was confused, and more than a little concerned about this missive. Kingsley had not mentioned any meetings upcoming, and why was her presence  **required**  instead of just requested?

With a silent sigh, she folded the letter neatly and readied herself for an early morning.

* * *

The next morning found Hermione anxiously awaiting the Minister of Magic. It was 8:30 AM and she had stationed herself outside his office, much to the displeasure of his receptionist.

"Kingsley, I'm so glad you're here early too!" she smiled, as she greeted her friend and mentor.

"Hermione", he beamed at her, leaning in for a quick hug, "I see you have arrived early, as usual".

She smiled brightly, trying not to show her nervousness, and followed him into his office.

The Minister for Magic office had been completely redecorated after the most recent election.  
Kingsley, who had been serving as Interim Minister after the fall of Voldemort, had been elected in a landslide victory and felt the room needed a breath of fresh air.  
The walls had been painted a pale grey, with maps of each floor of the Ministry charmed onto them, a spell developed by Hermione (with inspiration from the Marauder's Map). The spell allowed the Minister to send messages directly to offices on the map, rather than using owls or the ever popular charmed paper airplanes. This allowed immediate delivery, and little chance of interception, as the charm required wand activation by both the sender and the recipient.

The carpet was a plush navy blue, and Hermione always longed to toe off her high heels and squirm her toes into the soft fabric.  
The office was truly beautiful, and a subtle nod to Shacklebolt's graduating Hogwarts house, Ravenclaw.

"I'm assuming you're wondering why I required your presence this morning?" Kingsley began.

"Well, yes. To be quite frank Kings, you usually don't keep me in the dark, and I figured if there were legislation issues, you would have let me know about it before calling me into a meeting".

"I understand Hermione." Kingsley paused, as though he weren't quite sure how to continue. "You see, it's not that this meeting is about just legislation. It's... complicated. The Department of Mysteries and the Unspeakables have been working on a spell. It's come time to start testing and while many of us have tested it ourselves, we need a new set of eyes, and a new test subject, if you will. With your spell creation experience, we thought you'd be a good fit. You know the Unspeakables have been trying to hire you since you graduated. And it's not just that. This spell is going to be used in conjunction with upcoming legislation, so we need to be sure it works correctly".

Hermione's eyes narrowed slightly in speculation. "Well, I suppose we better get on with it then, shall we?"

* * *

As they entered the conference room, Hermione was only slightly surprised to see the other attendants of the mandatory briefing.

In addition to herself and the Minister for Magic, also in attendance was the Head of the DMLE, Gawain Robards, the Head of the Department of Mysteries, Saul Croaker, who was seated next to two Unspeakables, both in head to toe black robes with large hoods covering their heads and faces. Augustus Pye, the Head Healer at St. Mungos was seated at the end of the table, next to Tiberius Ogden, who Hermione assumed was a representative for the meeting from the Wizengamot.

"Gentleman and Lady, please, find a seat so we can begin", Kingsley declared.

It was only then that Hermione realized she was the only witch in the room. As the crowd found seats around the comfortable conference room table, Augustus Pye began to speak.

"Thank you all for being here. I think I should begin, by explaining the reasoning we're all here today, and then I'll pass it over to Mr. Ogden to discuss the Winzengamot's stance, and Mr. Croaker to finish by detailing the spell developed to assist the problem."

He took a deep breath, and let it out shakily. "In the last five years, St. Mungo's has dedicated a team to researching the ever-rising squib population, as well as the recent rise in miscarriages and infertility. After the First Wizarding War, we noticed a decline in births, something that was uncommon after major world events like the end of a war. Families only had one child, sometimes two, instead of three or four or more as in years prior. We noticed at that time that many families were struggling to get pregnant or to remain pregnant. It was during this time we began our research, although most of us believed that it was simply a matter of stress on witches and wizards who had just been through a major traumatic event.

However, our research was halted with the rise of Voldemort in 1995, as St. Mungo's had to dedicate it's staff and researchers to the influx of patients and new dark spells that were injuring them.

In 2000, we realized that there had been again, a sharp decline in the number of births, something we had hoped would increase after the end of the Second Wizarding War. In 1999 there were 60 births. In 2000, there were 45, and in 2001 there were only 27 births. Thus far in 2002, we have had only 14 births.

There has been an uptick in miscarriages, and we've seen couples unable to conceive at a higher rate than ever before. We believe there to be an underlying issue, a sickness, if you will, causing low birth rates and miscarriages among those couples who are currently trying to conceive. However, one of the true issues is that couples are not marrying and having children.

After the war, there simply hasn't been much familial growth within our communities."

Hermione sucked in a breath at the realization of what must be happening. She'd heard whispers in the Wizengamot but thought it to be rumor or wishful thinking among an old-fashioned branch of the governing body. She looked at Kingsley in a panic, but he gave her a sad shake of his head.

Tiberius Ogden then stood and began to explain what the Wizengamot intended to do about the issue.

"My friends, most of you in this room already know the outcome of the most recent closed sessions of the Wizengamot, as you were required to report your findings and recommendations to the council.

St. Mungos, after much testing, determined that the rise in miscarriages and squib births was directly related to an increase in genetic anomalies related to the marriages and intermixing of family lines. While most of us within the Wizengamot did not understand the world of genetics, we brought in many who had lived, worked, and studied within the Muggle scientific communities to explain the problem. I cannot say that everyone within the council agreed with the problem as presented, but we all did agree that we needed to address it quickly and with as much consideration as possible.

The genetic experts we worked with indicated to us that in order to revive the Wizarding community, we must not allow for the intermixing of family lines. We have found that marriages between pure-blood and half-blood or muggle-born partners are more likely to result in live, healthy births than those with matching blood status.

The Wizengamot has deliberated long and arduously and has elected to implement legislation to protect the future of the Wizarding community within Britain."

He was silent for much longer than was comfortable, and realization crept into Hermione.  
She stood quietly, dread weighing down her limbs, making her feel as though she could barely move. Her voice was barely a whisper when she spoke.

"Mr. Ogden. Please. Are you... are you saying that you're going to outlaw marriages between pureblood couples in order to prevent unhealthy pregnancies?"

"Much more than that Miss Granger" he sighed in defeat "Much more than that.

The Wizengamot has decided to implement a Marriage Law. We'll be requiring witches and wizards between the ages of 21 and 45 to marry and produce children within a designated time period. Purebloods will be required to marry a half-blood or muggle-born. Half-blood witches and wizards will have the option to marry either a person of any half-blood status or pure-blood status, although cases may exist where a half-blood can marry a muggle-born. However muggle-born witches and wizards must marry into a pure-blood line. Research has shown only the introduction of a completely new wizarding line can revive the genetic pool of pure-blood lines after so many generations of inter-family mixing."

"This is insane. This is absolutely insane!" Hermione choked out. She wanted to scream. She felt rage welling up within her.  
"You want to take away the right of people to marry who they love! What if I loved a muggle-born man! You're telling me I can't marry him!"

"Please Hermione, sit down, we're not quite done yet" Kingsley urged.

Ogden looked warily around the room before continuing. "A spell has been developed that will catalog a witch or wizards magical genetics and pair them with a partner with a genetic code most distant from their own. The spell is designed to ensure that future generations are not from widely intermixed family lines.

The spell requires a drop of blood from the caster, spread atop a piece of parchment, along with the incantation  _geneticae spatium_. This sends out a magical pulse, we've allowed the pulse to cover the distance of the Britain wizarding community. The pulse picks up magical genetic signatures and matches the caster to those most distant from their own."

Hermione interrupted. "What aren't you telling us. What else is there?  
I can see it on your face, Mr. Ogden. What more is there!"

"The spell matches the caster with magic lines that are distant from them in an effort to ensure the least inter-family mixing, as I said previously. However, because of the low population of muggleborn witches and wizards, the spell will match them with multiple magic lines that are compatible with their own genetics.

This means a muggle-born witch or wizard will be connected to at least one pureblood line. The magic may connect them to more than one pure-blood line, and depending on the power and purity of the genetics of the witch or wizard they may also be connected to one or more half-blood lines, as well."

Hermione exploded.


	2. Chapter two

**YOU GUYS.**

The response to this story has been a wee bit overwhelming, to be honest! My husband is like... your phone is going off the hook with emails over here...  
I practically squealed as I explained why!  
I am glad to hear you are all interested! Thank you for your feedback!

I am several chapters into the story and as a thank you for following and reviewing (omg I really did NOT expect...) here's chapter two!

* * *

To say she was shocked was quite an understatement. Hermione was more than just shocked. She was furious. Enraged. Offended. Insulted. Terrified.

"You idiots!" She screamed at the gathered group of men. Kingsley flinched under her steely gaze.  
She could feel her magic swirling within her as her emotions raged within her.

"Are you absolutely bonkers? Have you lost the plot completely? You can't force people to get married! You can't take away free choice!" Hermione seethed. "Just another group of manipulative madmen trying to take over people's lives and happiness and desires!"

She turned sharply, "AND YOU!" leveling her eyes with the Minister for Magic, "You once fought alongside heroes, determined that we all should be free from the tyranny of blood prejudice and here you are not five years after that war, ready to take the reins to remind us lowly mudbloods of our place beneath the great pure-blood race! How could you Kingsley? I trusted you!"

"That's enough, Hermione. You will not use that word in my presence again." Kingsley stood, slamming his hand down hard against the cherry wood of the table. "If you think for a second this is something we wanted, that it's something I thought I'd see happen in my lifetime, you are sorely mistaken. I fought for the right for us all to be free, but there won't be an us if we don't fix the birth problem. I fought for the betterment of our world, for rights for all, and I know it must feel as though they're being stripped away from you, but we have no choice. You must listen!"

Tears were streaming freely down her face at this point, and Hermione wanted nothing more than to run, to apparate as far away as she could, and hide forever.

"God damn it, Kingsley. God damn it." she muttered, half under her breath, sure no one was focused on her at this point anymore, as everyone was stunned at the volume of the words from their Minister. She turned and briskly rushed from the room.

* * *

Five minutes later, Kingsley Shacklebolt found himself pacing silently outside the bathroom attached to his office.  
He knew Hermione hadn't left the building. Hell, he knew that she hadn't left his office suites, as the wards were designed to notify himself or his receptionist of the comings and goings in the rooms.

Knowing she had locked herself in the bathroom did not ease his tension one iota. He needed to get her out of her isolation, and into a chair, willing to listen to what they had to say.

He knocked softly. "Hermione, please come out. I know this is overwhelming. I know this is infuriating. I've felt it all myself over the last few weeks. But I need your help now. We need your help. We can't move forward without you".

The door opened with a nearly inaudible click, and she stood in front of him, puffy and red from her tears.

"I don't want to do this, Kings. I really don't." she whispered.

"I know, but I need you." He guided her back into the conference room and she sat rigidly among the gathered men.

"Tell me why I am here. Why did you need  _me_  of all the witches in Britain? There are other muggle-born women you could have called in. I am not important to this."

Tiberius glanced quickly at her. "You are vital to this, Miss Granger. Yes, you are a muggleborn woman, which will give us perspective on your viewing of the law, but you are a known spell inventor, as well as a highly sought after law representative. You are uniquely qualified to help with almost every aspect of this project.

The Wizengamot has drafted legislation to attach to the Magical Matching Law, as we're calling it, but we need you to review the laws suggestions and provide us with feedback.

As it stands, we wish to require all eligible witches and wizards to cast the  _geneticae spatium_ within 30 days of law implementation. The results of the spell are immediate and will trigger an automatic communication to affected parties. We intend to declare that matches must marry within six months of their spell cast.".

"Be that as it may," Hermione interrupted, "forcing witches and wizards to marry will do jack all for your reproduction problem. Just because you're forcing marriages upon people, you can't force love. You can't force children."

"Actually, we can." Tiberius countered. "We intend to require pregnancy within the first two years of the marriage."

"NO. You absolutely cannot force us to have children! I'm going to be bloody sick! You pillocks, you just have absolutely no idea what you're doing, do you!" she shouted. "You're going to end up with another stupid Wizarding War because you can't pull your heads far enough from your arses to see what this will do to all of us! You really think pure-bloods are going to sully their bloodlines? Do you really think muggle-borns are going to put themselves in a world of risk to marry a pure-blood for babies they don't even want?"

"No, we don't think that at all" Saul Croaker intervened. It was the first he'd spoken at the meeting and Hermione had to catch her breath in order to even hear what he had to say. "We know that people will be against this law. We have no other remedy for the upcoming crisis. There is no other option. People will comply, or they will leave the magical world."

"You-" Hermione began.

"No. Stop talking and listen." Croaker demanded. "The magical population of Britain  **will** die out if we don't do something. That includes you. There's nothing to say that you could marry the man of your choice and have a family, regardless of blood status. The magic that feeds us all is sick, Miss Granger, and this is the only way to fix it.

We know it's manipulative. We know it's oppressive. We know it's monstrous. But we have no other choice. We have done our very best in the Department of Mysteries to develop a spell that will track down a person's magical genetic complement, but the spell is designed for the safety of the caster. It cannot connect a witch or wizard to another who would wish them harm or ruin.

The spell has many layers, and the genetic matching component is only one of them. This is why we have asked you specifically to be here in regards to the spell creation. We have seen many of the spells you've created, the least of which is on the walls of every office in this building. You understand spell layering and verbiage and we need you to verify that the spell is valid and inviolable."

* * *

Hermione was doing everything in her power not to break down in tears.  _Again._

"What you're asking me to do is be the muggleborn witch to test your spell so you can determine if it works correctly? You're asking me to  **not only**  test your spell but to research that its components are safe. That it will not harm the caster or intended matches. You're asking me to help you with a spell that will surely destroy my future. Am I understanding this correctly?"

"Yes" was the simple reply from Croaker.

"Fuckers". She mumbled under her breath, as Croaker pushed a folder in front of her.

"Here is our research, everything we've put together on the  _geneticae spatium._ The spell is complete, and everyone in this room has cast it themselves with no ill side effects or harm. However, none of us are muggleborn, and each of us has only one magical match." Kingsley explained.

"You've done the spell? All of you? If it works why do you need me here?" questioned Hermione.

"We each have very specific guidelines towards what our matches allow. As pure-blood and half-blood wizards, we are allowed only one match per the spell specifications. A powerful muggle-born witch like yourself may have many matches. You may have only one match. We need to see how the spell responds to a muggle-born caster."

"And you couldn't find anyone else to do this? Anyone other than me!" she nearly shrieked at the gathered men.

"Of course there are other witches, other muggle-borns. But you are the only one bound to the confidentiality clauses set forth by the Wizengamot, as part of your work with the DMLE. You are the only one who literally  _cannot_  speak of this outside of the gathered company." Tiberius explained.

"For fucks sake," she groaned, "show me how to do the spell so I can get the hell out of here. I need a bloody break".

Augustus approached her with a blank piece of parchment.

"The spell is quite easy, Hermione. We will prick your finger, and you will smear the drawn blood across the top of this page. You will move your wand in a circular clockwise spiral, three circles complete, and say the incantation  _geneticae spatium._ This will generate the magical pulse. The pulse travels outward to the barrier wards of Britain, reading the magical genetic content of each witch or wizard it passes. The passing pulse and readings are not noticeable, obviously, as each one of us has already cast the spell.

After a few moments, the pulse will return. Your parchment will glow white, indicating a match or matches. The spell is designed to glow red if magical matches are not found, but we don't anticipate that happening, especially not to you."

"Fine, whatever" she snapped. "Let's just do it."

With the paper placed in front of her, and tears welling in the back of her eyes, Hermione used her wand to slice open her fingertip, knowing the amount of blood amassed was more than necessary, but feeling better for the spitefulness of it, smeared her finger across the parchment in a thick dark line.

She raised her wand, gave three tight circles, and cast the  _geneticae spatium._ A light blue glow filled the room and then was gone.

She sighed, lowering her head into her hands, praying no one thought to speak to her in the moments she waited.

As quickly as it began, her parchment began to glow white, and she snatched it off the table, not wanting anyone to see her results before she did.

As words began to form out of the smear of dark blood, Hermione began to laugh.

In seconds, she was hysterical.

"You gobshites." she choked. "You utter wankers. Your spell is fucking broken! It doesn't work!"

Croaker looked insulted, but she didn't care. She couldn't find it within herself to find empathy for the men willing to destroy her life but not able to even craft a spell well enough to do it correctly.

"You ought to figure this out before you talk to me again. Your bloody spell matched me with two dead men and a former Death Eater!"


	3. Chapter Three

Y'all got me feeling so excited to keep writing!  
While I don't quite have a set schedule for updates, I am intending to update at least once a week, perhaps a bit more if I can get the story down.  
I am in continued awe over the feedback for this story and just want to jump around and thank all of you for reading!

**ENJOY! :)**

* * *

Three days later found Hermione slumped over her coffee table, a cup of cold tea in her hands, once again in tears. There are small stains on her navy blue tank top and flannel pajama pants. Her hair sticking in twenty directions with two quills perched in the massive bun on top of her head. Stacks of parchment piled around her, frustration clear on her face.

"Kings, I checked all the layers of the spell. I checked the casting movement. I checked  _everything_." she moaned to the man sitting behind her on a frayed dark red love seat. "I don't understand where the spell is broken. It all looks correct. It worked for all of you! There's no reason it shouldn't have worked for me Kings. There is no reason I can find."

"You're going to make yourself sick." Kingsley chuckled lightly. "I know your results are shocking Hermione. And before you get angry, I took them before everyone could look, but the spell isn't broken. You've done the work and the research yourself. You know it's true."

"Kingsley, you're mad. It paired me with  **dead men.** It must be broken somewhere." she replied.

"I think it's time for us to call another meeting. We'll meet in the morning. I'll floo call the others and have them prepare." The man rose regally from the sofa, as though he were made for another world completely. His finely tailored robes stood out among the aging furniture and piles of books, although he seemed comfortable and at home in the space.

"Bring your research, and that stack of parchment you have on how you think the law should be changed, too. You've got good advice in there and I think they need to hear it. I'll see you at 9:00.  
And Hermione, do try and get some rest, you look a bit mad".

She threw a quill at the man as he stepped into the green flames of the floo network.

"Of course I look a bit mad", she mumbled. "I  _am_  a bit mad! I must be, to go to another meeting of his".

* * *

Hermione arrived at the Ministry of Magic the next morning without a minute to spare. She dressed to impress, in a smart pencil skirt and an eggplant colored silk blouse. She knew if she was going to make it through the meeting without bursting into tears or screaming in rage, she'd need to at least feel a bit self-confident.

She stepped quietly into the conference room and started pulling her files of research from her briefcase. As the years had passed, she'd taken to casting the undetectable extension charm on all of her bags, so the piles of parchment that were building up on the table took no one by surprise. She thought she heard a snort from one of the Unspeakables, but she couldn't be sure, so she ignored it.

She cleared her throat, looking at the men seated around the room.

"I've researched your spell thoroughly, as you can see. At this time, I haven't been able to find the flaw in the design and layering that has caused it to find results for myself that are as impossible as they are. I'd like to talk about the spell more, of course.

I also have redrafted your legislation for the marriage law. You've pigeonholed only a young generation of this community to fix the mistakes made before some of us were even born. We all know that witches and wizards are fertile well into their eighties, and there is absolutely no reason for those of us who are only years out of school to take the brunt of this burden. I have quite a few recommendations on how to fix that, as well."

It was clear to those around the table that those recommendations were more like demands, judging by the fierce look on Hermione's face and the stern tone of her voice.

"Where would you gentleman like to begin?" she inquired.

"We need to start with the spell" spoke Croaker, although he could tell that others in the room disagreed. "I know the law seems a bit less... emotionally charged, so to speak given those of you who understand the implications of the results, but we need to get it on the table so everyone can participate freely in the discussion".

"Actually, Mr. Croaker" Hermione interrupted, "I would much rather start with the law. I've done some research and made some changes to your spell, but without an understanding of why I made some of those changes, I think you might be rather upset at how I changed the spell."

She looked pointedly at Kingsley, who nodded in support.

"Great". Hermione stood and began handing stacks of parchment out to the group sitting around the conference table. "In these packets of parchment, you'll find my redraft of your honestly oppressive legislation.

While I still disagree with the Ministry forcing themselves into our private lives, I can understand the fear you must have in regards to the future of our community. That being said, I will not allow your fears to be an excuse to treat the people of our world with such inherent disregard." She looked around the room slowly, straightening her spine as though preparing for battle.

"First, we will need to increase the age range required of the law. Mr. Ogden, you stated the law would apply to those between 21 and 45. I propose we increase that to mandatory participation up to age 65, and optional participation from those aged 66 to 80."

Tiberius Ogden looked fit to be tied, and before he could sputter out a single word, Hermione continued.

"Please, gentleman. Don't interrupt. I have a lot to get through and I will explain the reasoning behind the changes I've drafted fully. After I've gone through all the changes, we can discuss them. I would argue that sounds fair given that I've already tested your spell for you, don't you think?"

Her stern tone of voice and the truth of her statement rang in the ears of the gathered men.

"Thank you. I'll continue then." Hermione went on. "The average life span of a magical person is 140 years. If a person were to marry and become a parent at age 65, they would have quite a life with that child in the remaining years. Even if a person had a child at age 80, they would average about 60 years before passing on.

Your desired age range limited the brunt of this burden to be carried by the youngest generation of adults in our community, who have just fought a war, to box up their collective traumas and personal beliefs and desire for true love. I think you can ask other generations to do the same.

However, I think it's safe to say most 21-year-olds would be quite uncomfortable with a match to an 80-year-old, and vise-versa. I've modified the spell to show all matches, but only those within a 25 year age range would be required matches. Matches outside that range would be at the discretion of both parties.

The law as written only specifies that matches must marry and have children within a two-year timeframe. You'll find specifications I've made to this on the third page of your parchments.

Simply telling married couples to procreate does not ensure the repopulation of our society. I am proposing that individuals have 30 days to comply with the summons to cast the  _geneticae spatium._ After the spell has been cast, magical matches will be summoned and will need to cast within that 30-day time frame. I imagine you'll want the first castings to be people who have researched the issues and will support your law, as well as those you can get to agree to follow the terms of the law that have a high public respect.

I'm assuming you'll have me be the muggle-born voice of the committee, but you'll need other younger and older people to speak for the Ministry and agree to be the public face of this spell. I have included a list of those I think you should consider on page four, but I am getting ahead of myself.

After the casting has been completed by all parties in a magical match, they will have 10 days to agree to the matches. Those who agree will have six months to marry. After the marriages, couples will be pregnant within the first year of marriage. This gives them time to get to know each other both before and after their vows and to be comfortable enough sharing a bed in order to conceive. After the birth of the first child, couples will have five years to conceive a second.

I expect St. Mungo's to be on hand to provide no-cost consultations for fertility medication and should they be needed, even potions to assist with sexual encounters, like inhibition reducers or lust potions."

She thought she saw a flash of anger on a few faces in the room, but there were still no interruptions, for which Hermione was extremely grateful.

"On page five you will find that I've changed your legislation to allow the spellcaster to add an intent-based layer to the casting to specify if their matches should be of the opposite gender, same gender, or both. The Wizengamot is forcing magical matches and that is horrible enough, participants should be allowed to stay within their own sexual preferences.

Again, I expect St. Mungo's to provide potions to help same-sex couples conceive. I have researched several potions, found on page six, that will allow for the extracting of DNA from both parties to create either egg-based or sperm-based pregnancy components that can be then implanted into a female's existing uterus or a temporary uterus for male carriers.

Your law also presumes that married families will have the means to care for multiple children. Even if families do have the means to adequately provide for marriage and children, the Ministry is forcing them upon the community, and the Ministry should hold the burden of providing for them.

I am proposing that the Ministry cover all the pregnancy and birth-related costs that arise from magical matches. The Ministry should also put aside money to help with educational costs both prior to Hogwarts and for Hogwarts educations. You all know that the Ministry has confiscated a large number of galleons and artifacts within the last two wars, and there is absolutely no reason you cannot spend some of that to help the ease the burden on the families you are creating.

This should be extended to children born from the law requirements, but if families chose to go beyond the law requirements for births, the Ministry would not be held to the same monetary requirements."

Hermione paused, giving time for these changes to sink in with the group. She expected there to be more fighting and pushback on the demands she had made. While it was clear there was discomfort within the room, she was shocked that no one had fully disagreed with her yet. She knew patience was wearing thin and pushed on with her findings.

"The law as written has placed a high responsibility on unmarried persons within our community. I have changed the legislation to include already married couples as well.

Married couples will be required to report to St. Mungo's for genetic fertility testing. Those with compatible genetic lines will be required to birth an additional two children. I imagine families who have had numerous successful births will fall into this group. If their lines are compatible, they will not be required to cast the  _geneticae spatium._

Couples who do not have compatible genetic lines for continued healthy births and low familial intermixing will have two options.  
The first option will be to dissolve their current marriage bonds, and cast as single participants. I expect you'll receive a lot of anger over that. The second option will allow married participants to cast together, to find magical matches that will complement both genetic lines. Matches could then marry into the already established families. These matches would be held to the same two birth requirement per line as other matches.

There are only a few other changes I'm suggesting, and I've already made changes to the spell to reflect these.

The Wizengamot will exclude any participants from long-term care wards of St. Mungo's and any interred prisoners within Azkaban. While the law is a requirement, it does also require informed consent. We will not force partnerships with people who cannot understand them. Should a patient leave the care of St. Mungo's or the halls of Azkaban as a reformed citizen, they will be subject to the constraints of the law.

Lastly, this law places a large number of people in potential danger. While we have won the last war, there are lingering pockets of fanaticism and continued blood purity supporters. I have changed the spell to prohibit unsafe matches."

Hermione sighed and took a seat next to the Minister. Her hands trembled upon her lap as she fought to remain calm.

"None of these changes matter much at this point" she spoke defeatedly "because your spell is still broken, and even in all my research I haven't figured out how to fix it."

A chuckle came from under one of the thick black robes. "The spell is not broken, Miss Granger." an oddly familiar voice declared. "As you clearly researched it in depth, you already know this."


	4. Chapter Four

I'm continued to be encouraged by the reviews left and the details you all are picking up on!  
You've given me  **so many**  ideas for little side plots or features to the story that I want to include!  
While I can't promise to continue updating as quickly as I am lately, I can't seem to stay away!  
Here's chapter four!

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Hermione was stunned for a moment, she was sure there was a look of confusion on her face. She had never heard of an Unspeakable actually, well, speaking. The purpose of the position was to only serve the Department of Mysteries and she had no power within those walls.

"The spell is not broken, nor damaged, nor is it defective, Miss Granger, as your research clearly shows." Mr. Croaker interrupted quickly.

"The spell  _has_  to be broken. No offense Mr. Croaker, but my results were clearly a mistake!" she interrupted. In her frenzy, she put that familiar voice to the back of her head. She was running on little sleep and surely her mind was looking in mad places for an explanation to the chaos.

"I'm not sure where the flaw is, though. I looked through every layer of the spell! I looked at the pulse, I looked at the genetic scanning component, the parchment charm, the blood requirement. I looked at everything and while it all looks correct, there's obviously an issue somewhere." She knew she was ranting, but she couldn't bring herself to really care about how she must appear to these powerful men.

"Before we discuss where the issue might be hiding, you should know I made a few changes to your spell." She quickly continued, hoping to avoid the argument over whether the spell truly was or was not flawed.

"The spell was designed to pulse Britain for magical matches, and communicate with those the spell has matched the caster with. I've designed a way to turn the automatic communication on and off, as I am assuming at this point you're intercepting those communications by other means, given that I didn't see a particularly blonde man running around screaming after casting my own spell on Monday.

By turning off this component of the spell, you allow testing to continue without creating panic, and those who will be your first willing participants will be able to communicate with their matches in a controlled environment rather than through Ministry owl."

As she looked at the other occupants of the room, seeing no discontent, she continued.

"I've also added a layer to the spell that removes matches from the pulse once they have been made. For example, I've cast and while my results are ridiculous, the spell was working off of my magic and my intent. It would be possible then, that another caster's pulse might scan me and find me fitting, but I already have matches. Removing me from the pulse scan after I have cast or consented to a match removes the possibility that some people may end up with an overwhelming number of matches."

She continued on, barely pausing for breath. "That's just a small change I've made. We all know there are people in Britain who should probably not be marrying and having families. The amount of dark magic that a person has used can corrupt their magical genetics. I imagine we'll find more than one person whose magic will make them unsuitable for the law. You've already got the charm to indicate a red parchment when no matches are found. I've expanded upon that and created a grey glow for those whose magic is determined to be a danger to spouses or children."

She looked to Kingsley as she spoke, "You will need to determine how to handle those cases within the constraints of the law, of course. You'll need to determine where the magic is corrupt, and why. That's not really a part of the spell."

She fidgeted in her seat, uncomfortable with the conversation. "Additionally, as I've previously stated, the change to allow same-sex matches has been layered in as well. You can see a summary of the change on the tenth page of your packets. I've changed a layer of the spell slightly to allow the caster to cast with the intention of picking up matches among their preferred gender or genders. I know St. Mungo's has devised ways to help couples of the same gender to carry pregnancies and safely deliver and I expect it will be used in this case, as I already stated.

I would hope that St. Mungo's would also encourage couples to consider male pregnancy carriers even if it is a female/male match. If I have to be matched with three men, that's six babies in just a few years."

She knew that last part wouldn't go over well and was pleased, a bit spitefully, at the looks of horror she saw on most of the men in the room.

Croaker looked at her differently though. He was pleased with her contributions to the spell, and the changes she proposed to the legislation. "Thank you, Miss Granger, for that addition. It is something that we didn't truly address. Of course, there are going to be members of the community who should not participate in the law, especially among the prisoners within Azkaban, and potentially some who have left Azkaban. We appreciate your concern for those who desire a specific gender as their magical match as well."

"Yes." she replied, "But none of this is useful until we can figure out where the spell is broken."

"Miss Granger," Kingsley began, trying to remain as professional as possible despite his close relationship to the woman next to him. "I've already told you, the spell is fine."

"Minister", she replied angrily, her temper swirling beneath her skin, "you already know my results. You  **know**  it is broken."

* * *

Perhaps you should share your results with the room?" Augustus Pye questioned.

"Absolutely not!" she shouted, before taking a deep breath to calm herself, hands trembling.

Beside her, Kingsley put a firm hand upon her shoulder. "If you don't explain it, they'll never understand why you think there is a flaw within it."

"But -" she began, "Okay. Okay, fine."

As much as she wanted to scream at the gathered group, she took a calming moment and explained, "You already heard me say that the spell matched me with three people.

The first is Draco Malfoy, although I can't imagine  _that_  to be honest, I represented him at his trial, and I suppose we get along well enough now, but we're completely different people! I know he has been out of Azkaban for two years, but no one has seen or heard from him in that time. He's a recluse. He may not even be healthy enough to participate. I don't doubt that he has strong magic, but you'll have to figure out the law in order to get him to marry a lowly muggleborn."

"The other two matches are with men I know to be dead," she hesitated slightly, embarrassed that the spell miscalculated for her matches, of all people. "Sirius Black died in the Department of Mysteries in 1996. Mr. Croaker, you of all people should understand that the veil took him. I was there that night. So you were you Kings. You know he's dead just as much as I do."

Hermione slumped deeper into her chair, feeling a wave of panic rush over her, settling deep within her bones. Weariness played across the plains of her face.

"I watched the other man die myself, a victim of the cruelty of Voldemort. A hero beyond measure, but still dead. Severus Snape was bitten by Nagini several times, and I watched him bleed out on the floor of the Shrieking Shack. There was nothing that could be done to save him. It's one of my deepest regrets, and we must fix the spell to ensure no others have to feel the pain of matching to a person they once respected and idolized so deeply."

The silence in the room was stifling. She knew there would be no demand now that the spell was not inherently flawed.

"The body was never found" a voice came from the only person in the room who hadn't yet spoken, the second of the Unspeakables. She sensed a tinge of humor in his voice that infuriated her.

"Don't be stupid," she responded. "Of course the Ministry said a body was never found. The public  _despised_  Snape. They hated everything about him. He killed Dumbledore. Even with the knowledge that it was unpreventable, many people within the public did not forgive that easily. The details of his life and spying were not made fully public for many months and they would have burned his body in the streets if possible. I'm assuming the Ministry just interred the body privately, out of respect, since we did know his truth, right Kingsley?"

The Minister looked at her, baffled by her reasoning, but sadly as well.

This time, it was the man in the Unspeakable robes who spoke again. The man with the familiar voice. "Perhaps it is time, Mr. Croaker."

"Fine." Croaker rasped, eyeing Hermione with trepidation.

The two men stood quietly and lowered their hoods.

Hermione stood quietly as hysteria rose within her. It wasn't possible.

"Severus" she whispered, unaware that in her shock she'd used the man's given name, and without permission. "Sirius?"

She was glad to be sitting because she couldn't feel her legs. her vision swam black. Her voice seemed stuck in her throat as she whispered to herself. "How? How is this possible?"

As the distress ran rampant through her veins, Hermione had only one thought as the room went dark - Harry was going to be so pissed.


	5. Chapter Five

Hey friends!

Thanks for all your wonderful reviews and feedback on the story, I am just beyond thrilled to hear you're enjoying it!  
This chapter is a bit longer than the others, but we've got a lot of ground to cover, and I didn't imagine you'd mind much!

To those leaving reviews - I've tried to respond to all of them, but if I missed responding to yours please hear my heartfelt  **thank you**  for both reading and taking the time to respond. It definitely helps me to want to rush back to the keyboard to continue writing!

Many of you have offered theories and advice for the law, and I must say some of you have this genetics thing down pat! You're inspiring and I absolutely love it!

Now for the part of the story you're all dying to have - chapter five!

**ENJOY! :)**

* * *

Hermione opened her eyes to see a stark white room surrounding her. She blinked rapidly, trying to clear her head.

Her mind was racing. She wasn't quite sure where she was, but if she had to guess, it'd be St. Mungo's. Only a hospital room could be quite so white, quite so sterile.

She recalled the shock she felt upon seeing Sirius Black and Severus Snape. She didn't understand at all how this could be real. She knew both men were dead. She watched it happen, for Merlin's sake!

She tried to calm herself down with a round of deep breaths but found that she couldn't control the panic and confusion warring within her. Her eyes glazed as she heard a distant ding and the door she must not have noticed before swung open.

"Ah, Miss Granger, glad to see you're awake again." Augustus Pye stepped into the room, a calming draught held loosely in his hand. "I know you've had a surprise, but you'll make yourself sick if you don't calm down a bit. Drink this, please."

He handed her the potion, helping her tip it into her mouth as her hands shook violently. She felt the brew working, her muscles relaxing and her gasps slowing.

"I don't understand." She whispered, as much to the air, to herself, as it was directed at the healer standing by her bedside.

"May I sit, Miss Granger?" He asked.

She nodded mutely, after all, he had to have more answers than her.

"It was certainly a shock to all of us, except Croaker and Kingsley of course. I can remember treating both of those boys when I first became a healer. I was as saddened by the news of their deaths as anyone." He smiled gently at the witch lying under crisp clean sheets.

"I can't imagine this is easy, and I haven't gotten much of an explanation other than " _well it's magic, after all"_. I think they wanted to explain it to you, first."

She stared blankly ahead, still trying to process that two men she revered were alive and well within the bowels of the Ministry of Magic. Her mind refused to process the facts. Their continued existence felt like a blur within her brain. She knew she needed to hear their stories.

"Miss Granger, the Minister would like to speak with you. He asked me to notify him when you awoke." Healer Pye looked gently at Hermione, gauging if she was well enough for visitors. "Can I tell him you'll see him?"

"Yes, yes of course" she answered softly, sinking back into the mattress, hoping that this was all some weird dream and she'd wake up with laughter about marriage laws and dead men.

* * *

Kingsley arrived nearly an hour later, striding into the room like a man who had no secrets about dead men living. He was resplendent in dark purple robes that seemed to almost glow against his chocolate skin.

"Ah, you're awake." He sat neatly on the chair next to Hermione's bed, looking at her with a mix of concern and pride.

"You know, you handled that much better than I did when I learned of it." He laughed.

She glared at him, furious that he had known all along that her matches were true, but even more incensed that he knew these two men, members of The Order of the Phoenix, heroes of the Second Wizarding War, were alive.

"Why didn't you tell us, Kings? Why didn't you tell us they were alive?" she asked him. "Harry has mourned Sirius every day since he went through the veil. Every single day. He's never truly recovered, and you've had him here for how long? How long has he been back?"

Her voice cracked. "And Snape! I saw him bleed out on the floor of the shack. I know he wasn't breathing when we left. He gave those memories to Harry and that was it. There was no more after that. How can he be alive?"

"The stories of their survival are not mine to tell, Hermione." he responded, "But I can apologize for keeping you in the dark. I suppose I'll have a lot of answering to do, both to Harry and The Order. We knew it would come out eventually, them being alive, but this wasn't quite how I expected it to happen."

He sighed deeply, the facade of contentment on his face cracking slightly. "It's going to be tough Hermione, to hear their stories and to move forward from here. We have so much to do and we're relying on you heavily. I know it's unfair but I'm asking you to be strong now."

She grasped his hand, not trusting her own voice at that moment.

"When can I see them?" she asked. "I need to know. And Kings, we need to tell Harry."

"One thing at a time, Hermione". He smiled gently, knowing that her compassion always extended to others much sooner than herself, "Let's not get ahead of ourselves."

* * *

Hermione awoke several hours later, not quite remembering having fallen back asleep, but grateful for the rest. She stretched languidly, then reached for a tray of food that was left under warming charms at her bedside.

Her stomach let out a small growl of hunger and she chuckled that her mediwizard or witch must've known well enough that she didn't have breakfast before the meeting that morning and would be ready to eat when she woke up.

After she had fully tucked into the crusty bread and chicken soup, a gentle knock came from the hall.

"Come in" she responded.

The door opened and Kingsley stepped elegantly into the room, followed by a man Hermione never imagined seeing again, and certainly not in this state.

"Hello, kitten." Sirus smiled at her. His long black Unspeakable robes were unclasped in what she could only imagine was a small display of rebellion. He wore a maroon button up shirt underneath, with dark grey trousers. His hair was shorter than she remembered it being in fifth year, still jet black with gentle waves.

But what truly confused Hermione is that he looked much, much younger than was possible. He was 37 when he fell through the veil, but the man in front of her appeared to be 10 years younger than that. He was healthy. His skin practically glowed, his teeth were straight and white, there was no depression or madness in his molten silver eyes.

His laughter boomed loudly in the room, startling Hermione, who realized she'd been staring.

"Are you checking me out, Hermione? I know I'm quite the specimen." He joked.

"You - you shit!" Hermione responded. "I don't understand! How are you here? How do you look like  _that?_ " She gestured, waving her hand to represent the changes to his looks.

"I suppose it'll be time for me to start talking then, huh little one? Alright then." He removed the black cloak, folded it over the back of one of the wing-tip visiting chairs, and sunk into the chair next to her bed, crossing his ankle over his knee, looking fully the part of a man born into wizarding aristocracy.

"I guess I'll just start at the beginning and get it over quickly. Rip the plaster right off them emotional wounds, huh?" He joked.

She glared at him, and he sighed.

"You know I went through the veil back in your fifth year. Hard to imagine it's been nearly six years since then. Six years in just a few days, you know?" His voice trailed off as though caught in recollection. He cleared his throat roughly.

"Right, so I went through the veil back in '96. I'm guessing you all thought that was the end. I mean... it's not like witches and wizards are popping back out of the veil at any regularity. And it's in the Death Chamber of the department. Sounds pretty permanent.

You know that the Unspeakables have been researching the veil since they found it hundreds of years ago. While they still don't fully understand the purpose of it... they do know some of its unique traits and flaws.

The veil represents a thin barrier between the world of the living and the world of the dead. That's why so many people often hear whispers in the Death Chamber. They are hearing the voices of those beyond the veil.

The veil was never meant to be a device for transporting the living or the dead. It was more for communication than anything.

I'm not the first person to go through the veil, and I certainly wasn't the first to come back."

"What?" Hermione interrupted. "Others have come back from the veil? Who? So the Department knew we could get you back and they did nothing to help? Did Dumbledore know, that old coot could've helped and didn't?" Questions spilled from her mouth nearly as quickly as they came to her mind.

"Calm down there kitten, I'll answer your questions once you stop rambling a bit." Sirius laughed, glad to see that Hermione hadn't lost her passion in the years of war. "Of course the Department of Mysteries knew that I'd return from the veil. You see... the only way out of the veil is if you died to the veil in the first place. I did say it had some unique traits, didn't I?"

He leaned back in his chair, eyes searching for her. "You see, the veil cannot be used to bring back the dead or resurrect men, but it wasn't meant for that purpose. The veil has an inherent safety mechanism built directly into it by whoever created the monstrosity. I imagine that person to be quite the idiot, but luckily for me, they were a responsible idiot.

You see, the veil was designed only for communication, and should someone get close enough, or wild enough, to go through the veil in some sort of accident or attempt to join the voices beyond, they'd be caught in a stasis. Not alive, nor dead, until the circumstances that led them into the veil had changed."

"What circumstances?" Hermione asked. "If a person walked into the veil to join the voice of a loved one beyond, how could that ever change?"

"Ah, and there you have another mystery of the Department of Mysteries!" Sirius joked. "We've got quite a few down there, you know!"

"Just tell me how you came back, Sirius. I'm tired. Don't give me the runaround, okay?" Hermione pleaded.

Sirius slumped in the chair. It was clear he was avoiding it, although she couldn't quite understand why.

"I was sent into the veil. I was forced there, by Bellatrix, as you know. She hit me with a spell and I fell backward into the veil."  
A look of pain was etched upon his features. A mix of revulsion, fear, and regret.

"She's dead," Hermione told him. "She died during the battle at Hogwarts. Molly killed her." She was trying to reassure him that there was no danger to him now from his crazy Aunt. Unconsciously, her hand drifted to cover the scar that Bellatrix had left on her arm. "She's gone now."

Sirius looked at her with a grin. "Oh yes, I know."

He laughed then, a gentle sound that eased the tension in her body, a smile on his face. "You see when she died the veil spit me right back out onto the floor of the Death Chamber. Her death changed the circumstance that fed me to the veil, and so my stasis was ended."

"It was quite unexpected," he continued, "I had just seen Harry. He used that stone to call us forth before he faced Voldemort. I saw Lily and James and Remus... and then... I was back on the floor of the chamber. I thought perhaps it was because he killed Voldemort, but the Unspeakables knew enough by then about the veil to tell me that it was Bellatrix's death that brought me back."

She looked at him in awe, muted by the shock of hearing his words. "But you look - and four years you've been back - and no one..." her thoughts trailed out of her mouth as though by force. She was mumbling under her breath and Sirius found it adorable.

"Yes, there is the case of my handsome looks, isn't there!" He bantered. "Looks this good don't happen overnight kitten, it takes six years in a healing stasis to look this fierce! "

He was amused by the look of confusion on her face. "The veil is odd, Hermione. It... didn't just hold me as I was when I entered. You remember I was depressed, a bit mad from my years imprisoned, unhealthy with the strain that 12 years among the dementors and too much to drink after that had caused my body."

"The stasis, it brings you to your true state." He explained. "It just gave me what I was meant to have before Azkaban, before years of neglect, drinking, depression, and self-loathing destroyed what I once was."

Hermione was overwhelmed with the information. She was glad to see Sirius returned, of course. But she was frustrated that he'd been alive for four years and no one was the wiser. She knew she was intelligent, the teachers at Hogwarts, especially McGonagall, spoke often of his skill and cleverness, although with humor because of his poor behavior. Of course, he'd be an Unspeakable if he couldn't tell the secrets of his return to life.

"Sirius, I have so many questions for you. I'm so glad you're alive." Her eyes shone with tears and Sirius could tell she was trying not to be overcome with emotion.

He stood gracefully, and gently grasped one of her hands between his. He was warm, warmer than she thought he'd be. She looked up at him from beneath her lashes, and he felt a jolt of desire through his body. "We'll talk more later," he replied, pressing a kiss to her fingers.

She laughed. It was a soft tinkling sound that heated him. "Get down here and hug me, you prat. Kissing my fingers like you care about pureblood manners. I ought to hex you!"

Sirus was glad to hear her laughter and relieved to know she wasn't angry. He swept her up into his arms, twirling in a circle as she breathlessly and pounded his back with her fists. "Put me down, you! I'm supposed to be resting!"

He stopped spinning and set her gently upon the bed. "Yes, you should be resting. I am going to go now, there are things to be done. I'll be back soon. I imagine you'll want to see Severus soon, too." he responded with a laugh at the look on her face.

"Yes, I call him Severus, don't be shocked. I can't call him Snivellius forever. I'm trying to be an adult here!" he said playfully.

She beamed at him and he thought it was the most beautiful sight he'd seen in years.

"Speaking of the man, he'll be in after dinner. You might want to prepare for that!" Sirius stepped out of the door quickly to avoid the pillow she'd thrown at him. He was relieved and thought perhaps this law could be something that he could support, as he knew he wanted to spend more time with the woman in the room.

He needed to see Kingsley. It was time to figure out his return to society.


	6. Chapter Six

Here's another bit of a longer chapter for you! These boys have some stories to tell!  
I'm going to try and continue updating every 2 - 3 days (no promises!) and I have 22 chapters sketched out which is approximately a third of the story. It'll be a long one!  
Thank you again for all the feedback and follows. It's been freakin' awesome.

**Enjoy!**

* * *

By six that night, Hermione was pacing the floor of her small room in St. Mungo's Hospital. She had complained until she was blue in the face to Healer Pye that there was simply no reason to keep her in St. Mungo's just because she passed out in shock! It happened to people all the time. There was nothing wrong with her, let her go home!

Healer Pye had explained, quite nicely, that she still had to meet with Severus Snape, and if she handled that well, she could go home.

She knew she was venting her nervousness about meeting her Professor on her healers. She understood their reasoning, of course.

Dinner had been served at five, and by 5:30, Hermione was ready to get this meeting underway. The pacing helped to pass the time, so she continued.

* * *

At precisely 7:00, Severus Snape swept into the room in a billow of black fabric that immediately brought Hermione to a standstill.

He stood beside the wing-tip chair that Sirius had previously relaxed gracefully in. His arms were folded across his chest, a small smirk played upon his lips.

Hermione still hadn't moved, frozen in shock and nervousness, and  _oh my god_  he looks so different.

"Are you going to stand there staring at me all day, Miss Granger", he drawled, the smirk on his face broadening.

"What - no. No." she stammered. "I'll just sit down now". She was blushing furiously as she averted her gaze and made her way to sit comfortably upon the mattress.

She drew her feet underneath her, sitting crossed legged with the blanket draped over her lap. "Please Sir, have a seat as well."

If she thought Sirius oozed aristocracy, then Severus Snape would be the king. He moved like he owned the space he occupied. He lowered himself into the chair with a grace that bewildered her, after removing the heavy black cloak from his frame and lying it across the foot of her bed.

He was dressed head to toe in black, something that did not surprise her one bit. Only his face, neck, and hands were visible, but she felt like she'd never seen him in such a state of undress.

His button-down top was well fitted, showing off a muscular frame that she wondered where he hid all those years. He was broad shouldered, his biceps bulged against the cloth covering his arms. His trousers were cut slim, his firm thighs underneath and she found herself hoping he'd turn around so she could see how it looked from the back.

"Ahem" he cleared his throat and her eyes leaped back to his face, blush creeping over her skin as she'd once again been caught checking out one of the men she'd thought to be gone from this world.

"While I'm sure you could look at me all day, Miss Granger, we have more important things to discuss." His smirk seemed almost like a smile at that moment, and she realized she'd never seen him look so at ease.

"Right," she responded. "Right! Oh my gosh, Sir. I have no idea how you've managed it! I saw... well, you know, of course. We all thought you were dead before we even left the shack! Did you die and somehow come back like Sirius did? Were you snuck away? How are you here? Why have you kept it a secret?"

Her thoughts once again came pouring out her mouth and she wondered briefly why she was struggling to control herself.

His eyebrows raised, a look of humor upon his face. "Perhaps I should answer just one question at a time, despite your ever-present curiosity?"

Hermione slumped back against the head of the bed and waited patiently.

"Ah, good, you've managed to rein it in." He chuckled. A gloriously warm sound that filled her heart with hope.

"Clearly, I am not dead, despite popular belief and probably the wishes of many people in this world. To answer the easiest question you posed - I did not die in the shack. I was not brought back from the dead. There is no special magic to my circumstances, only a lot of prior planning."

His face was a blank slate, and Hermione knew enough of the man to know he must've been utilizing occlumency.

"It was not expected that I live through the war, as you can imagine. After killing Dumbledore, the side of the light would not have listened to a word I had to offer in the redemption of myself." He paused briefly.

"Miss Granger, I am nothing if not a consummate Slytherin, and I did not wish my life to be forfeit to either of the meddlesome madmen I had tied myself to in my youth. I went to school with Saul Croaker, and the Unspeakables had been attempting to recruit me for years, something I could never have done while under the thumb of Albus Dumbledore."

Despite his impressive skills at hiding his feelings, Hermione knew there was much lingering anger towards her old Headmaster, and she knew she couldn't blame him one bit for those feelings, as she had many of her own.

"I contacted Mr. Croaker after vowing the Unbreakable Vow with Narcissa. I thought he might have a way to undo the magic of the bond. The Unspeakables have their fingers in so many pots, that the likelihood of them having found a way around the magic was something I hoped for.

They did not have a way around the vow, unfortunately, but in his office in the DOM, Saul offered me something no other person ever had... a future."

He paused to gather his thoughts, and Hermione didn't dare to interrupt.

"He reminded me again that I was welcome among the Unspeakables. It was a position I couldn't accept at the time, due to the calling magic within the dark mark, and of course, my duties as a spy to the Order and saving your friend over and over.

I did not tell Dumbledore of the meeting I had with Croaker when I told him about the vow. I never would have imagined he'd order me to kill him in Draco's stead. You probably already know that Draco is my godson. You represented him, did you not?"

She nodded quickly. "I did. He did many things wrong in his life, but I didn't think he should suffer in Azkaban his entire life because of choices forced upon him. I was devastated that he had to serve two years in that hellhole anyway."

"Quite true," he responded. "Draco was... well he was quite the shit as a child, but he deserved much more than Lucius as a father."

Realizing they'd veered slightly off track, Severus began again. "I would've protected Draco without the vow from Narcissa, and without the order from Dumbledore. He meant, he means a lot to me. I would've preferred to do it without killing a man, but Dumbledore always had his reasons and I suppose he didn't really care how I came out in the end, as long as Voldemort died.

After Dumbledore ordered me to kill him when the time came, I requested another meeting with Saul. I showed him the memories of the vow and the meeting with Dumbledore, and we devised a plan. It was decided that when the war was over, I'd become an Unspeakable. No one but the Minister of Magic knows the identities of those in the department, so I knew I'd have a place to land to wait out whatever would happen after the battle. He assigned me a department elf, who I am sure you'll meet soon enough, Tippy."

She blanched, thinking of the elves that would soon enter her life. Three families with magical ties were sure to have a few elves on staff.

He smirked at her again "Ah yes, your elf campaign. Please do try not to free them all. We do like having them around, and Tippy is a good friend to me."

He continued, "It was never the plan that I would die at the battle. That was, of course, Dumbledore's plan, but after his death, I was no longer beholden to the vow he'd kept me in for so many years. I planned to find a way to give Harry the information he needed about the Horcrux inside him, and I was going to simply disappear. Tippy would collect me from the site of the battle, and I would remain with the Unspeakables for the remainder of my years."

He grew quiet, and Hermione fidgeted in her bed.

A deep sigh escaped him. "The snake was quite unexpected. I assumed Voldemort would realize he didn't control the elder wand eventually, but I never imagined he'd use the snake to try and gain its mastery. I had prepared for dueling him. I worked with Croaker to devise a spell that would put me into a deep medical stasis. It looked and acted like a shield and when an opponent cast the Avada Kedavra at it, I would simply sleep, instead of dying. The snake put a wrench in the whole thing though, as did the appearance of you and your band of friends."

He scrubbed a large hand over his face. "I suppose it worked out in the end though, I was able to give Mr. Potter the memories he needed. I do wish I'd have had a little more control over it, as I'd prefer he didn't realize I'd harbored feelings for Lily all those years."

He stood from the chair and took up the path Hermione had previously been pacing.

"I had a few bottles of anti-venom made from when Arthur was attacked by the snake. I didn't think I'd need them for myself, but they were there. When the three of you left the shack, Tippy came to me and activated a long-held elf magic spell that basically froze my blood within my veins. This delayed the spreading of the venom and prevented any more blood loss. She was familiar with my potions stores, as I'd been using her as my personal elf for the entirety of the time I'd known her.

She popped away and came back with blood replenishers, the anti-venom, and she magicked them into my bloodstream."

He turned and looked at her. "She saved my life. We have... a special bond."

She nodded mutely. Harry had a bond like that with Dobby, too, and she knew it was something to be cherished.

"Tippy left again, and I lost consciousness. When I awoke it was at the home of Saul Croaker. She'd fetched him and he had apparated in and brought me back to his home to further care for me. He brought in another Unspeakable to heal my wounds. This person had been working on healing magics and the combining of muggle and magical medical procedures. They'd developed a magical thread that they used to suture my neck. It prevented bleeding and minimized the scaring, but the stiches allowed for the venom to be extracted from the wound. Typical healing magic, as I'm sure you're aware, seals the skin completely. This would have left no way for the venom to leave the body."

During this time, I was in and out of awareness. I thought that hallucinations had taken over me. I was seeing people I knew to be dead, who hated me in life and would never work to save my life."

He walked gracefully back to the chair, his hand resting on the leather back.

"Sir," she questioned, urging him to continue.

"It was Black, of course." he sat with a sigh.

"Of course I would owe then man my life after he tried to rip it from me so many years ago. It took nearly four months for the venom to leave my body completely. I had been moved to a private hospital wing within the Department of Mysteries, and Black was there, every day, to change my dressings, extract venom, replace the magical stitches. I couldn't speak at first, so I did a lot of glaring. I threw a few punches, too."

Her eyes were wide by this point. She could hear the fondness in his voice.

"I never imagined we'd be anything but enemies, our past dictated a lot of that. But he saved my life. He did it with kindness and maturity that I never would have expected from him." Severus sighed.

"Professor," she asked, "Why didn't you tell anyone you lived?"

"I think, given the circumstances, you better stop calling me Professor. Or Sir. My name is Severus and if we're getting married you might use it." he responded.

"Don't' speak, I'm sure that's shocking, so let me just answer your questions," he continued with a small smile. "You spoke during the meeting about the public image of me after the war. That is part of the reason I had not brought my current life status to light. But, the Unspeakables offered me a freedom that life in the public sector could not. Within the DOM I was simply a man who was excellent at potions at research. I was not a death eater. I was not a spy. I was not a war hero. I was simply Severus. I found friendship in a man I never would have expected, someone who was also bound to be hidden for the remainder of their years. It was a comfort I had never experienced before."

"Were it not for this law and the spell to go with it, I would never have left the walls of the Department of Mysteries" he finished, folding his hands in his lap and crossing an ankle over his knee.

Hermione stared at him, shocked by the story, with his honesty, with the  _friendship_  of the two men who had despised each other previously.

She found herself smiling brightly. "Oh just wait until Harry hears that you two actually get along! I can't wait to see the look on his face!"

Severus let out a small choked sound. "Well, with that Miss Granger - "

"Hermione" she interrupted loudly. "If I'm calling you Severus, you must call me Hermione."

"Hermione", it rolled off his tongue like butter "I'll send in the healer so you can be released. The Minister has requested you visit his home in the morning to discuss the next steps in the law and the spell. You should remember that you're still beholden to the confidentiality standards set by the Ministry... You should avoid telling Mr. Potter for the time being."

She groaned, hating to admit he was right.

"Alright then. See you tomorrow, Severus."

He turned and smiled at her. A true smile. It lit up his face and he looked absolutely gorgeous, Hermione thought.

"Until tomorrow, Hermione."


	7. Chapter Seven

Hola friends!

My inspiration disappeared for a few days, and I've gone over this chapter several times to make changes because I'm just not  _sure_ if I like how it goes, but I digress.  
Here it is!

**Enjoy :)**

* * *

Hermione paced in front of the floo at 8:55 the next morning. She smoothed her hands down her elegant eggplant colored robes, grabbed a handful of floo powered from the mantle, tossed it in the fireplace and shouted "Shacklebolt Manor" before stepping through.

She was one of the few people who had open access to the Minister of Magic's floo, and she knew that it was because of the special friendship she held with the man. While they'd met so many years ago, that night they moved Harry from his Aunt and Uncle's house, it was the years following the war that drew them into their kindred friendship. Hermione served as a sounding board for Kingsley's rants about the political system, and Kingsley comforted Hermione as she dealt with the trauma of her year on the run, her torture, and the death that had surrounded her.

"Kings," she smiled as she stepped into his sitting room. The man was lounging elegantly on a beige loveseat. He was wearing Muggle clothes, a style he preferred in the comfort of his home. His shirt was a soft heather grey v-neck tee and he had dark denim jeans that slung low on his hips. He reeked of rich comfort, and Hermione often found herself wishing she could find such ease in herself.

The man stood to hug her firmly. He kissed her on the forehead and led her to the loveseat. "It's been a crazy few days, hasn't it?" he asked.

She sighed heavily. She still felt as though she was living some sort of dream. It still didn't seem possible that the Ministry was ready to force people's hands in marriage and childbirth, and it certainly didn't feel real that two men she idolized were not only living but due to be her matches.

"We're going to need to talk to Harry," Hermione said. "He deserves to know before all of this gets out of hand. He's going to need some time to process it all before it goes public."

"I assumed that'd be the first thing we talked about this morning" he replied with a chuckle. "Of course we'll tell Harry. He's at the Ministry now, but I had Robards clear his schedule for 10:00 this morning, and I can summon him to my office if you'd like to go ahead and get this underway."

* * *

Harry Potter arrived in the Minister for Magic's office at 10:00 am with a head of messy hair, glasses askew, and robes unbuttoned. He was classic Harry messy. A broad grin broke out on his face when he saw Hermione seated in one of the straight back chairs across from Kingsley's desk.

"Hermione!" he exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

She jumped up and nearly bowled him over, running into his arms for a rib-cracking hug.

"Oof," he grunted, "Not that I don't appreciate your enthusiasm, but that's an awfully big hug for a meeting at the Ministry."

He laughed, before looking down at the woman clinging to his robes. It was then that he noticed she had tears in her eyes and looked skittish.

His joy quickly receded as he took in the seriousness of the tension in the room.

"Hermione," he questioned, "what's going on?"

She stepped back from his arms. Her body had a slight tremor as she fought to control her emotions.

"Harry!" Kingsley boomed, "Why don't you have a seat. There's a lot to cover this morning".

Hermione was grateful for him taking the lead, as she sunk back down into the chair she'd previously occupied. Harry sat next to her gingerly, as if he expected to have to bolt from the room at any moment.

"Last week, we asked Hermione to consult on some new legislation and spell work that is coming from the DOM and the Wizengamot." Kingsley began. "I must ask that for the duration of the conversation, you do your best to remain calm, and remember that everything spoken here is confidential."

The tone of the Minister's voice sobered Harry. He nodded sharply.

"Good." Kingsley continued. "St. Mungo's has been researching a problem with the births of babies in the Wizarding community. Families are experiencing a high rate of stillborn births, miscarriages, infertility, and an unprecedented amount of the live births are producing squibs."

Kingsley took a deep breath before continuing. "The DOM has partnered with St. Mungo's and the Wizengamot to develop law and spells to help combat this issue in the future."

Harry looked confused. "So, the DOM and the Wizengamot have to be involved in medical issues now? Why is that necessary?" he asked.

"It's more than just medical issues. The Wizarding community is dying out because of the low birth rates. The fact is, without intervention, there will be no future at all for this community. We need to guide people to healthy births."

"What exactly are you saying?" Harry inquired. He was still not sure what the point of this conversation was.

Hermione interrupted. "Without intervention, people will continue to marry and birth children in ways that will not ensure the future propagation of our society. Families have intermixed and interbred to such a level that the genetic pool is completely broken. If those families continue to intermix, there will be no healthy births."

Hermione looked uneasy, but she continued. "The DOM has developed a spell that will match a person's magical genetics with another witch or wizard's to ensure the healthiest births within our generations and future generations."

Harry was silent.

Kingsley took over the conversation, "The spell matches the best magical matches, and the Wizengamot is going to pass a law that witches and wizards must marry their magical matches within a certain timeframe, and those couples will be required to produce children within a number of years."

Still, Harry did not speak. He looked back and forth between Hermione and Kingsley with a look of shock, fury and mild confusion.

"Why am I here?" he asked in a firm whisper. It was clear he was attempting to hold back his rage.

"Several of us have already cast. I helped develop some changes to the spell after casting myself, and -" Hermione stuttered, unsure how to continue.

Harry leaped from his chair and started screaming. "You  _agreed_  to this Hermione? Did you agree to this trap? This is imprisonment! We didn't fight a war to be forced to have kids! None of us are even ready!"

"Please Harry, sit down. I've already been angry for days." She stood, her hands reached for Harry's shoulders and she guided him back into the chair. "You know me, Harry, I would never agree to something like this if it wasn't the only option. I spent days without sleep just researching. I've introduced tons of changes to the spell and law to make it fair and reasonable for everyone included."

Harry sat and slumped into the chair.

"Fine, whatever," he grumbled. "Still don't understand why I'm here. Why not just tell me with everyone else? Is this another "We need the boy-who-lived" thing?"

Kingsley spoke up, sensing that Hermione wasn't sure how to continue. "As Hermione said, several of us who worked through the research and spell and law development have already cast the spell to determine our magical matches."

"Right -" Hermione interrupted. "Except when I cast, there was a surprising result."

Harry glanced at her, noticing her shaking hands. "How bad can it possibly be, Hermione?"

She pulled a piece of folded up parchment from the bag at her feet. "When you cast the magical matching spell, it spells your results out on a piece of parchment. These are mine" she explained, handing the paper to him.

He read the paper, a shaking laugh overtaking him. "Your spell is broken," he responded, his shoulders shaking in mirth.

"That's what I said!" Hermione exclaimed, before quickly deflating. "But, in truth Harry, it's not broken."

"Hermione,  _SIRIUS_ is on here.  _SNAPE_ is on here! They're dead! And  _MALFOY?_ You can't possibly be a match for Malfoy! And this stupid thing gave you  _THREE_ matches. How can you say it's working?"

Kingsley rose from his chair and walked to the entrance of his office. He cracked the door open and addressed his receptionist.

"Becky, we're ready."

He strode back to his desk and looked sternly at Harry.

"Harry, what you're about to learn is quite secret, and I must ask that you not destroy my office as you did to Dumbledore so many years ago." Kingsley addressed the young man.

Harry looked embarrassed but couldn't understand the request. Why would he destroy this office?

A knock sounded at the door to the office, and Kingsley spoke again.

"Harry, will you answer that, please? It's for you."

Hermione looked at Kingsley in shock, understanding now how he was choosing to break the news.

Harry trudged to the door, turning the handle as he looked at Kingsley. "You know, all this mysterious bullshit is a bit ridiculous." He said as he pulled the door wide open.

As he turned to greet the newcomers to the office, he froze.

"Please don't faint, Mr. Potter. We've already had to catch Miss Granger, and I imagine you're quite a bit heavier." Snape jeered.

"Shut it, Severus," Sirius responded, opening his arms wide. "Come here, pup". He reached to Harry for a hug.

Harry whipped his wand from his robe, stunned both of the men, and spun to face the Minister.

"Call the Aurors" he demanded, and then turned and marched out of the office, slamming the door behind him.


	8. Chapter Eight

Thank you again, again, and again, for your continued reading and reviewing this story! It definitely helps!

I've struggled a bit with this chapter wanting to include ALL the discussion between the reunited men, but also knowing most of their conversation would be repeats of what you've learned in previous chapters! Hopefully, this is a happy medium!

Some of you asked for longer chapters, so hopefully, this strikes your fancy :)

**Enjoy :)**

* * *

Hermione looked at Kingsley with shock on her face. Harry had stunned Sirius and Severus and walked right over their bodies and left the room. That was certainly not the reaction she'd been expecting.

"I think you'd better follow him, Hermione," Kingsley said, waving his wand to cast a  _finite_ on the two men stuck on the floor.

"Right!" she exclaimed, hurrying out of the room.

* * *

Hermione caught up with Harry as he marched into the DMLE, screaming for his team of Aurors.

"Harry, stop!" she shouted, "Why are you screaming for the Aurors?"

Harry whirled around, his face a deep red, rage in his eyes. "What the FUCK, Hermione? There are two men in there impersonating MY Godfather and SNAPE! And you're standing there like it's just another day! It must be polyjuice, so I'm going to get my team together and we're going to go interrogate them after the potion wears off."

Hermione raised her eyebrows, and softly said "Harry, do you think that Kingsley would have just sat there calm as a clam while god knows who impersonated two men he called friends?"

"He did! He told me to open the door and there they were!" Harry ranted.

Hermione grabbed his arm, pulling him into his office and slamming the door behind her. "Sit down, Harry," she said, pushing him towards a chair.

She sent a quick missive to Kingsley, using the enchanted wall map that she'd developed. She let him know that Harry had riled up the Aurors, and she had it under control here, just give them a few minutes.

When she approached Harry, she noticed the shaking of his hands, the tears in his eyes, and understood that he was more than angry with her.

"I'm sorry," she whispered gently. "I wanted to tell you sooner when I found out, but you know I'm held to strict confidentiality measures with my job. I only just found out about the law a few days ago and about Sirius and Severus just yesterday. In fact, I spent most of the day in Mungo's after fainting when they revealed themselves."

Harry grunted in response.

"It's not my place to tell you their stories, and I'm sure you have so much you want to say to both me, and to them, but you can't do that from here. I need you up there, Harry." Hermione explained. "This law is going to be a mess, and I need someone by my side who can help me. I don't know Sirius like you did, and I'm going to have to  _marry_  him. And SNAPE! Harry, I have to marry SNAPE!"

Harry bent over in the chair, shoulders shaking, and it took Hermione a moment to realize he was laughing, not crying.

"Oh my god," he gasped. "I get to have the brother talk with them!"

* * *

Harry rejoined the group in the Minister's office feeling much calmer than he was previously. He walked straight up to Severus Snape and held out his hand.

"Sir. Your memories changed the tide of the battle, and while the things I learned in them were quite shit, I mean finding out I had to die, that sucked, they were the reason we won. I know I'm forever in your debt for the numerous times you saved my ass over the years." Harry sucked in a breath, waiting for a response from the stoic man.

Severus just stared, slack-jawed, at the young man before him. He never expected the young boy he remembered from Hogwarts to grow up and become mature and understanding.

Sirius snorted loudly, "Language, Harry!"

Harry looked as though he couldn't decide between punching the man or hugging him, and when Sirius rose from his chair, he threw himself into his Godfather's arms.

* * *

Several hours later, the group emerged from the Minister's office. They had spent the time behind the closed doors with Harry raging, asking questions, crying, and finally accepting the circumstances laid before him. The five of the office's occupants had detailed what had happened in each of their lives since Sirus' passing through the veil, including the year on the run, breaking into Gringotts disguised as Bellatrix Lestrange, destroying Horcruxes, returning to Hogwarts (for Hermione) and Auror training (for Harry. Sirius described some of the healing magic he'd been working on in the DOM and Hermione demanded to review his research, naturally. Severus discussed his role in feeding information to the Ministry about Death Eaters that had remained on the run after the final battle. He spoke freely about his work in the DOM on potions, specifically those related to healing curse damage and preventing injury.

Harry tried to bring up the memories,  _again,_ and Severus shut him down, stating he'd not speak about those memories, now or ever.

Harry knew he'd be angry for a while to come, but couldn't find it in himself to shun the idea of having his Godfather back in his life.

The friendship between Sirius and Severus was baffling to Harry, and to Hermione, it was simply amusing.

It was clear the two had bonded over the years they had spent within the Department of Mysteries, and while it was shocking to not hear the classic "mutt" and "Snivellus" insults, it was relieving to Harry to know that the two men he admired most were friends, not enemies.

The group had spoken about the marriage law, both the spellwork and magical matching portions, and the legislation that would be implemented. Harry found it repulsive, but he understood the significance of a dwindling society and the need to ensure future generations.

"Kingsley," Harry said, after staring contemplatively at the floor for several minutes, "I think I can help."

* * *

It only took a few moments for Kingsley to summon the rest of the committee for a briefing, given that half the members were already in his presence.

As the committee gathered in the conference room again, Kingsley spoke up first.

"As you can see," he declared, "We have Harry Potter among us today. He has been told of the circumstances of the medical crisis, the genetic matching spell, and as you must be aware, we have reintroduced him to the Unspeakables, as well."

"We are not here, however, to talk about Mr. Potter, but rather an idea that Hermione came up with during her days of research, that we will hope to gain Harry's support in." he continued.

"Hermione spoke very bluntly with me about how the public will perceive this law, and we're all aware it won't be friendly. People are going to be angry, hurt, and scared. We're facing the possibility of a rioting society if we're not careful." Kingsley paused to let that sink in with the others. "That's where we are hoping Harry can help."

"Right," Harry spoke up. "We all know I'm the wonderous  _boy-who-lived-twice_ and that I can't even go to the Alley without the papers flashing cameras in my face. If the law has public proponents and supporters, who the community already idolizes or respect for whatever reason, I think that will help the legislation be better received."

"Having two-thirds of the so-called Golden Trio support the law, we believe the public perception may be a bit tamer," Hermione interjected, "But we also want to approach upper-level Order members, and members of the Ministry and St. Mungo's."

"Who do you have in mind?" Healer Pye asked.

"Well, to start with, I believe everyone in the room, Harry excluded, should recast the magical matching spell. With the changes I've made to the spell and the legislation, matches could very well be different or extended." Hermione continued. "I've already recast and there were no changes to my matches, but there could very well be changes to yours."

There was a murmur of general agreement around the room, and Kingsley nodded, "Good idea, Hermione".

"Second, I believe we should call all of our matches into the Ministry to explain the situation, and ask them to support the legislation with us. I believe I'll have a bit of a hard time with Malfoy, but maybe seeing his Godfather will loosen him upon on it." she chuckled lightly. "After we have met our matches, we should call in those we'd like to support the law with us and repeat the process of their casting and talking with their matches. With any luck we could have 12 - 15 couples step out in support of the law."

"You know Severus and I will not be able to speak publically until the Minister is able to clear our histories with the Wizengamot, although I expect that won't be hard for you to figure out," he winked at Kingsley, "And we'll have to figure out what is still in our names as the last to our lines. Severus will have to claim the Prince line with Gringotts and I left the Black estate to Harry, but"

"Wait," Harry interrupted. "I haven't touched it. It never really felt right, and I have the Potter vaults and the Order of Merlin money, and I am more than okay. I've been living in Grimmauld though, if you want it back I can move - I'll get the Black estate returned to you as soon as possible!"

"Harry," Sirius smiled gently at his godson. "You couldn't pay me enough galleons to live in Grimmauld again. If you want it, it's yours. The vaults... well I'm going to have some kids to support, aren't I? I wouldn't argue with having them back if you insist."

"We can definitely discuss all of that in private, I think," Hermione took over the conversation, "But we should cast today, share our matches, and call those people in. Harry can meet with the Order members we are going to ask to support the law if they agree they can cast next week, and we'll bring in their matches after that."

She turned to Harry, "I know this is probably the last thing you want to think about, after all the shocks of today, but because you and Ginny aren't married, you'll have to decide if you'll marry and then cast as a couple, or cast separately. If you cast separately and you aren't matched... well... It would be very difficult."

Harry looked solemn. "Yes, I was thinking about that earlier in Kingsley's office. Not that it's anyone's business in this room, but I suppose we're all about to know more information about each other than we'd prefer, but I am going to cast alone. I'll talk to Ginny tonight."

Hermione stared at Harry with confusion on her face. "Harry..." she whispered.

"Not now, Hermione," he demanded, a blush rising on his cheeks and ears. "Not here."

* * *

Croaker cleared his throat and spoke up, eager to move the conversation along after  _that_  awkward stalling point.

"Miss Granger, I do think you've got a point. We should all agree to recast." He handed parchment to each person in the room. The silence hung thick in the air, each person weighing their future in these moments.

"Remember," Hermione spoke up, "That your intention will be read by the spell. It will match you to the gender, or genders, that you prefer, you won't have to speak it out loud, but you also can't fool the spell. That will need to be clear when we address this with the public."

She was stalling, she knew.

"Right then," Kingsley said with a sigh, "I should go first."

"Let's just all go" Sirius laughed, "It'll take the pressure off us, you know."

Each person in the room prepared to cast the spell, slicing their finger and drawing it across the parchments in front of them. The incantation  _geneticae spatium_ was spoken by each.

As results showed up on the parchments, looks of curiosity, anger, and maybe a bit of fear, shone on most faces.

"Who wants to begin?" Kingsley asked.

"Well, once again, I've matched with Hermione. No one else." Sirius said.

Severus spoke next, "I've also matched again with Hermione." There was a pause, and he pinched the bridge of his nose. "And Draco Malfoy."

No one spoke to that, aware this was incredibly personal information that Snape would not share in ordinary circumstances.

Kingsley revealed his match, Gwenog Jones, the muggle-born captain of the Holyhead Harpies.

Mr. Croaker was paired with Isabella Malone, a half-blood who works in the Department of Records.

Healer Pye looked nervous but spoke up "I didn't cast last time, as I was outside the original age range, but... I've matched with Minerva McGonagall.

Tiberius Ogden was another who did not previously cast, but he spoke quickly after clearing his throat. "I've matched with Abigail Frond. I believe she works at Flourish and Blotts. She's a muggle-born, I think."

The room quieted as the only one left to share their results was Harry.

"I... I wasn't expecting this," he stuttered, "I mean Ginny is pureblood so I assumed I'd match with her since I'm half-blood, or at least with... someone else, someone..."

Hermione reached across the table, gripping his hand in hers, "It's okay, Harry. You cast alone for a reason. No one here is going to say anything."

"It's... well there's two. Ella Wright. I think she was at Hogwarts with us, wasn't she Hermione?" he asked.

"Yes, two years below. She was in Hufflepuff, a muggle-born."

"Right, so her. And...," he grew quiet, his cheeks blazing. He handed the parchment to Hermione.

Hermione gasped, "It's Narcissa. Narcissa Malfoy."


	9. Chapter Nine

Ya'llllll make me so happy. The reviews and messages make me go *squee*!

ANYWAYS - Yes, I am aware that there is a distant relation in the black family line between Harry/Narcissa - in my mind, this is negated by Harry's muggle genetics from his Mother and the relation was quite distant to begin with, but whatevs, let's call this an AU, okay?

Also, I love you all! Just as a small FYI, I did take on a part-time job so my updates may be a bit more sporadic, but to make up for that, here's a long chapter!

**Enjoy :)**

* * *

Harry and Hermione apparated to just outside the wards of the Weasley family home on Sunday morning. The home stood tall and proud among grassy fields, a picturesque lake, and a small orchard. In the distance, it was easy to see several red-haired family members playing quidditch before the weekly brunch gathering that Molly held.

Hermione looked at Harry, "Are you sure you want to do this?" She asked him carefully.

"Hermione, I owe them this," Harry said blandly. "After all these years, the least I can do is tell them about the law myself, and... about my matches."

"Even I don't understand why you didn't cast with Ginny," Hermione mumbled, "You're going to cause a riot."

Harry sighed deeply, "Let's go." he said, and headed for the teetering house.

When Harry and Hermione entered the house, they were quickly pulled into the arms of Molly Weasley, the family matriarch.

* * *

"Look at you two! I feel like it's been forever since I've seen you, Hermione, you've been so busy at the Ministry!" she exclaimed, "And Harry! I'll call Ginny in, she's been waiting to see you all day!"

Molly shuffled from the room and Harry could hear her hollering for her children from the back door.

A stampede of feet quickly followed, and five members of the Weasley clan tumbled through the door.

"Harry!" shrieked Ginny, throwing herself into the arms of her boyfriend, "You're here!"

Ron strode in and gave Hermione a quick side hug, which made her more than a bit uncomfortable. He'd been harboring a hope for a relationship with her for many years, and she'd continued to rebuff his efforts, not only because she'd thought they wouldn't be a good personality match, but because he was on the arm of a different witch most nights, had taken up drinking and seemed much angrier than she'd remembered him being at school, which was saying something because Ronald Weasley was  _always_  angry about something, even then.

The floo sounded in the room adjacent, signaling the arrival of the last member of the family and his wife. Bill and Fleur walked in, with Billy looking messy and Fleur looking regal, holding the hands of their small daughter, Victorie, between them.

"Oh everyone's here! Come on now," Molly interrupted the small conversations that were happening in the room, "It's time to eat, and Harry and Hermione have news for us!"

Ginny glared at Hermione, wondering what news she could have with Harry. Harry was supposed to tell  _her_ everything, but Ginny knew that even after several years, he was still closer to the witch he arrived with.

The family gathered around the table, each grabbing spoonfuls of food that Molly had prepared. Harry loved this family, and knew what they were about to unveil would rile them up, if not have them shoving him out the door.

When everyone was served and tucking into the Sunday meal, Hermione began to speak.

"As most of you know, I work in close cooperation with the Wizengamot on new legislation being brought to the Wizarding community. I've asked Minister Shaklebolt for special consideration to discuss some new legislation with your family, you are our friends and members of the Order, I felt you should hear this from me before hearing it from the papers," she said. "Harry is aware of the law as well, due to some extenuating circumstances, and we're both hoping that you'll listen to what we have to say, and hopefully join us in supporting the mandate."

The room was quiet. It was clear this was a matter of importance.

Ron, mouth half full of food, spat out "Well, what it is?"

Hermione grimaced, although she should be used to his lack of table manners, it never failed to disgust her when he spoke with his mouth full of food.

"In order to explain the law, it's important that you understand some of the reasoning behind why the Wizengamot is implementing it." she continued, "You may have heard that St. Mungo's has been doing some long-term research into the decline in birth rates since before the first fall of Voldemort. That research has concluded and the results are quite grim."

She took a deep breath before continuing, "Many families are having a significant amount of trouble getting pregnant, and staying pregnant." She looked at Bill and Fleur, whose beautiful daughter was perched between them.

Bill cleared his throat. "We are aware. We had... a lot of trouble," he said, looks of shock around the table indicated that this was something he hadn't spoken of with the family. "Before Victorie, there were two losses. We had to use a lot of fertility treatments for her, and Healer Pye, who worked with us at Mungo's said we'd probably not get pregnant again."

Molly gasped, "But, the Weasley family has never had trouble..." she interrupted.

Bill groaned and there were tears on Fleur's face. "Yes, Mother, we know." he said, "But apparently that's not the case any longer."

Hermione knew she needed to take back over the conversation before feelings were hurt between the mother and son.

"Bill's right, even families whose lineage was successful previously are having a hard time conceiving." she said, "Research shows that birth rates are a fourth of what they once were, and getting lower and lower. Without intervention and assistance, the Wizarding community will be gone within two very small generations."

Arthur looked serious. "Intervention?" he questioned. "What do you mean?"

Hermione stuttered slightly, unsure of how to tell the family the news of the law. "St. Mungo's and the Wizengamot have determined the best way to prevent the die out of Wizarding Britain is to implement a law requiring able witches and wizards to marry and produce children."

The silence was deafening.

"Well," Ginny smirked, "I don't know about the rest of you, but I can support a law that allows me to marry and have kids with Harry. We were going to do it anyway, this will just have us doing it sooner rather than later."

Harry looked sick.

"Well, what about those of us with no desire to marry?" Fred asked.

"I'm already married and Penelope can't have kids, what about us?" Percy spoke up.

"I'm in Romania!" Charlie interrupted.

Each member of the family spoke over one another until all that could be heard was random shouting.

"ENOUGH," Harry shouted, slamming his fist onto the table.

"Jesus, calm down! We'll answer your questions" he declared. "There's no need for yelling, we're here as friends, remember?"

Hermione knew the man was on edge and worried about how to speak of his position in all of this.

"There have been adjustments made to the law to handle all of your situations. Non-married couples will have the opportunity to marry. However, they'll have to submit to magical genetic screening to ensure their magical genetic lines are compatible with future life. If the person you are with is a magical match to you, you would be allowed to marry." She paused, "Well, mostly..."

"You see, the research St. Mungo's completed indicated that the problem with the birth rate stemmed from intermixing familial lines to many pure-bloods marrying other pure-bloods. So pure-bloods will have to pair up with half-bloods or muggle-borns." Hermione explained.

Ginny sighed audibly, and Harry fought to not roll his eyes.

"There's a lot that has gone into the matching process, the Department of Mysteries worked, with my help, to develop a spell that will pulse Britain's magical population and determine the best matches for witches and wizards to ensure future procreation." Hermione knew there was about to be an outburst, and so she continued, even louder.

"Just, please wait. Let me finish." she said, "Couples who are not married can choose to marry and cast for magical matches together if they are not a magical match themselves. It is required. Couples who are already married will be required to submit to medical testing to determine if they're a good magical match. If they are not, they will be required to cast for magical matches as well."

Bill spoke first. "Hermione, this is insane. Are you honestly telling us that both Harry and you support this?"

"I assure you that I did not support the law, or magical matching, in the beginning. I did a lot of yelling and screaming and fighting and in the end, the only thing I could do is ensure that the law that was passed was a fair and balanced as possible, including a larger range of ages, up to 80, and allowing for same-sex partnerships and male pregnancies." Hermione said.

"So, Fleur and I are probably not a magical match, are we?" He asked, softly.

"Probably not." Hermione answered sadly, "With the troubles you've already had, it's unlikely that you'd be a magical match. You could stay married and chose to cast together, for matches for both of you, or to stay married and cast separately. Both of you would be required to marry any matches the cast found for you. The other option would be to separate and cast alone, which I am assuming you would not choose to do. We are anticipating many of the arranged pure-blood marriages to take that path."

Fluer was openly crying, hugging her daughter and clinging to Bill. "So, we can stay together." she asked, "We just need to have more kids with others? How many kids?"

"Two, at least." she said, "with each match."

At first, she thought no one caught that addendum, but Percy was looking at her shrewdly.

"With  _each match,_ ' he sneered. "Excuse me, are you saying we will have more than one match?"

Hermione looked down at her hands, not being able to bear the looks of shock and anger on the faces of those she loved.

"Yes. Most purebloods have matched with one, sometimes two people." she said quietly, "Half-bloods will likely pair with two people, and muggle-borns with  _at least_  two. It's not ideal, I know. Please understand I've already raged as much as I could bear. I have  _three_  matches."

It was then that Ron exploded.

"WHAT!" he shouted, spittle flying. "YOU have THREE matches? HERMIONE, you were supposed to be with ME! I'm your match! You go tell the ministry to fuck right off!"

Hermione looked at her school friend with frustration and sadness in her eyes.

"Ron, you were not one of my matches. The spell did not find our magical genetics to be matching. I already have my matches." she said.

"WHO?" he screamed at her, his face purple with rage. "Who did you choose, you stupid slut?"

"It's none of your business at this point  _RONALD,_ and I would ask you to refrain from petty name calling." she sneered at him.

Ron clearly could take no more as he shoved away from the table and slammed out the back door of the house, screaming the entire way about traitors, bitches, and having his wife stolen from him.

Hermione shook her head, looking at the other occupants of the room.

"I know this isn't easy to stomach. Please, please know that I did everything I could. We can't risk wizarding Britain dying out, we just can't" she pleaded.

Arthur spoke, so quiet it was almost a whisper. "I would think Molly and I are a good match, we have seven - well six, but seven kids already. What will be required of us?"

Hermione could see the heartbreak on his face. "If you are magically compatible, you will be required to produce two more children. You would not be required to cast for more matches."

The relief on his face was palpable, and Molly still seemed frozen in shock.

"Harry," Ginny spoke loudly, "I'll support the law, let's just go get the testing and get married right away so we don't have to worry about anyone else. I know you haven't asked and I wouldn't normally tell you we should do it, but we need to get married before the law, don't you think?"

Harry looked downtrodden, and more than a bit green around the gills.

"No."

Ginny was clearly confused.

"What? No?" she asked.

"No, Gin, I'm sorry, we can't do that," Harry said sadly.

"Yes, we can! You're the boy-who-lived! Just tell Kingsley that's what you want and you know he'll make it happen! Come on Harry!" Ginny was nearly shouting, and close to being hysterical.

It was then that Harry got upset.

"OF COURSE!" he shouted, "That's all I'm good for isn't it? The bloody boy-who-lived? That's all you  _ever_  talk about! Dating the boy-who-lived, marrying the boy-who-lived. I'm MORE than that Gin!"

"Well, I know Harry, I just think you need to be more proud of it, gee!" Ginny defended herself, "I didn't think you'd be  _upset_  about it! I'm just helping your image!"

"And  _I_  don't give a bloody shit about my image!" Harry responded. "I don't want to be the boy-who-lived. I don't want to do interviews, I don't want to take photos, I don't want a big wedding, especially not with YOU!"

All the side conversations and whispers in the room were silenced in a single breath.

"Excuse me?" Ginny croaked, "Not with me? What? We've been together since sixth year!"

"Yes, and I truly loved you, once." Harry said grimly, "I care about you, about ALL of you" he looked at the family gathered in the room. "But Ginny, you need someone who wants to live in the spotlight and take you to fancy dinners and out shopping and spoil you rotten, and that's not me! I just want a house, my job, and some kids to keep me happy. That's all I need!"

"Please Harry!" Ginny pleaded, "The law will  _make_ us have kids! We can compromise! I can be that wife!"

Harry stood, and Hermione could tell he was planning to leave so she lept to her own feet, gathering her belongings.

"Gin, you're wrong. even if we  _were_  a match, you would never be happy with that life." he said, "Besides, I already cast, and I have two matches. And you aren't one."

He looked at Hermione and gestured to the door.

Hermione turned before exiting.

"I know this is hard, but we could really use your support. I'll owl you later. Please, please consider it." she said, before leaving the room, grasping Harry's hand, and apparating away.


	10. Chapter 10

Heya friends!

I hope you're ready for a bit of an exciting chapter. This chapter will be much, much longer (by like... triple lol) than the others because I'm going to squeeze in a few plot points so that the next chapter can focus more on some of our matches!  
I know most of you don't mind those longer chapters, so here you go!

(PS, your reviews make me squeal. I know I haven't responded to all of them, and I'm sorry, so please know that I am so so grateful!)

**Enjoy :)**

* * *

_Mrs. Narcissa Malfoy nee Black,_

_The Ministry of Magic requires your presence at an important meeting on June 18th, 2002. The meeting will take place at 9:00 A.M. in the conference room of the Minister's office. Please note this meeting is compulsory. Failure to attend will not be permitted._

_Because of the confidential nature of this meeting, we are unable to verify the other attendants of the meeting or the topic of the gathering._

_Yours Sincerely,_

_Kingsley Shacklebolt_

_Minister of Magic - Order of Merlin, First Class._

Narcissa stood solemnly in the sitting room of Malfoy Manor, with the scroll held tightly in her fist. She had never been summoned to a meeting with the Minister of Magic and had no idea what to expect or what it was about. She had served 2 years of house arrest after the Second Wizarding War, her husband had been sentenced to the kiss, and her son had been remanded to finish his Hogwarts education and to complete several hundred hours of service to the community.

They had tried to live a quiet life, staying out of the public eye as much as possible. Her son attained a Potions Mastery and brewed many healing potions free for St. Mungo's.

She heard loud, angry footsteps approaching in the hall before the door to the room slammed open and her son strode through the doors.

Draco was an intimidating wizard in his looks. At 6'4" he towered over most wizards and witches. His lean form was dressed immaculately in modern cut dress robes, and often even in designer muggle suits. He'd let his blonde hair grow to shoulder length.

"My son," Narcissa addressed Draco as he stormed into the room, "You seem bothered, what is it?"

Draco threw a crumpled piece of parchment onto the desk that sat by the largest window of the room, "A letter from the Minister, Mother." he sneered, "I have been  _summoned_  to a meeting. Mandatory, it says."

His feet led him to the nearest sofa where he slumped down into the cushions, running a hand through his platinum locks. "What do they want? I've done nothing but good for  _years,_ Mother. I have served this community well for years, and now I'm being summoned by the Minister!"

Narcissa felt her masks crumpled as she watched her broken son rant. He'd been through much in his years, being forced to take the mark for his Father's mistakes, having to participate in acts of evil to preserve his own life and often for her life, as well. He was a wizard merely going through the motions and she wished for nothing more than a moment of peace and some happiness for him.

She approached the couch where he was slumped miserable and sat next to her son with the grace born of a pureblood witch.

"Draco," she reached a hand out to him, rubbing his shoulder in an attempt to comfort the boy who meant so much to her, "I received a summons as well. I'm assuming your meeting is also tomorrow morning?"

He nodded grimly.

"You are not alone, my son. I will be there and we will face whatever the Ministry has in mind for us with dignity and grace. You have done absolutely nothing, and I will not let any harm come to you." she stated firmly.

The witch had never been very affectionate with her son in his early years, as her late husband had forbidden touch between the Mother and her boy, claiming it led to weakness in the male line. After his sentencing, she'd discarded those beliefs and had done as much as she could to comfort and love the boy.

She pulled him into her arms, gripping him in a fierce hug as she felt a broken sob escape his chest. "All will be well, Draco," she whispered to him.

* * *

The Malfoy family arrived at the Minister's conference room at precisely 9:00 A.M. the next morning. Draco stepped into the room first, with his Mother tucked neatly behind him, in an effort to protect her from any danger that may lie within the room.

His eyes searched the room quickly for any sense of danger. Seeing none, he strode fully into the room with Narcissa, the pair of them finding a place along the back wall to perch themselves.

He scanned the room, viewing the other gathered members and noticing quite a few familiar faces. Minerva McGonagall, current Headmistress at Hogwarts was seated primly at the table. She nodded politely in his direction. He'd grown a tentative friendship with the woman in the years following his last year at Hogwarts, and he now brewed all the potions required by the school.

There was a woman dressed in bright green and yellow Quidditch jersey, who he thought might have been the captain of the team, Gwenog Jones.

He recognized Tiberius Ogden, who had sauntered over and shook his hand firmly. He often worked with Ogden as he was beginning to take over the Malfoy seat in the Wizengamot. He was only attending a handful of small meetings at this time, and he knew the council had many more closed-door sessions that he was not yet privy to.

The head healer at St. Mungo's was also in attendance and lifted his hand in a wave to Draco.

"Mr. Malfoy," Pye greeted the young wizard, "Your potions are impeccable as always, and I imagine we'll have quite a few new orders coming your way!"

Draco smiled at the man who had worked hard to help him build his reputation after the war.

There were several witches gathered throughout the room that Draco didn't know, though he thought he recognized one from the bookstore in the alley and one who went to Hogwarts with him, and a man whom he thought worked in the Department of Mysteries.

He noticed his great-Aunt Andromeda sitting primly across the room, a scowl on her face.

Also in the room were two-thirds of the "Golden Trio". He peered through his hair at Hermione Granger and Harry Potter, who were tucked into a corner of the room whispering between themselves. He noticed Luna Lovegood and Neville Longbottom in the room as well.

There were also two hooded Unspeakables present in the room.

It was a hodgepodge of people, and he couldn't figure out the connection that had brought them all together.

* * *

The Minister for Magic strode into the room five minutes later, a chuckle on his breath as he apologized for his lateness.

He gestured to the crowd to find seats around the enlargened conference table.

"I'm sure you're all wondering why I've gathered you here today." he said, "and I am eager to tell you. Before we begin, however, you should know that this meeting falls under strict confidentiality standards of the Ministry of Magic, as such I must ask you all to swear a vow of secrecy before we continue."

Draco felt his Mother stiffen beside him.

"Excuse me, Minister," he spoke sternly, "A vow? I am sure you can imagine how  _uncomfortable_  my Mother and I am with binding vows."

The Minister looked at Draco with what might have been understanding, or might have been pity, Draco couldn't be sure.

"I understand, and I would not ask it if it were not completely necessary. You should know this vow will only hold you to secrecy for a period of two weeks." Kingsley continued, "After that, the need for secrecy will be lifted and you will be free to discuss all matters we have discussed here as freely as you wish."

Draco looked at Narcissa, who nodded sharply.

"Fine," Draco muttered, raising his wand to swear the oath. The other participants of the room did so quickly and with much less argument than Draco expected.

After the oaths had been cast, Kingsley spoke again, his voice much more serious than Draco had ever heard.

"We have asked you to be here today because each one of you is important to upcoming changes in Britain's magical community. Before I begin, I must ask that you all do your best to maintain your composure and save your questions until we've had a chance to explain fully." He said.

Looks of confusion were shared around the room between many of the gathered.

Hermione Granger took that opportunity to stand next to the Minister. "What you are going to hear today will be shocking, and probably infuriating, and upsetting. Please know that each one of us that have asked you to be here understands your feelings and have dealt with our own in regards to it as well."

She spoke eloquently. Draco knew she was active in the Ministry doing work as a barrister, and he could tell it suited her.

"The original committee consisted of Minister Shacklebolt, Healer Pye, Lord Ogden, Mr. Saul Croaker Head of the Department of Mysteries, and myself." she continued, "You all already know Mr. Harry Potter, and we also have two Unspeakables from the DOM with us as well."

"For more than 20 years, St. Mungo's has dedicated a team to researching the dwindling magical birth rate that has grown within our community. Most of you are probably aware of at least at some level, that families are having fewer children then they used to. Older generations often had three, four children, or more. Most of my classmates are only children." she said.

Draco knew this was true. In his family circle, only one family had more than one child. The Parkinson family had Pansy and her little sister Poppy, but his own Mother had many miscarriages and was not able to birth a second child.

"The research found that magical genetics, a code if you will within each one of us, our personal mix of magics, had led to the decline in pregnancies and viable births." She explained, "Both before and during the first Wizarding war, families began to intermix their lines. Pureblood families often married other Pureblood families. This is not an attack, please don't be upset. We all know it to be true, and many of your own families have experienced it. Marriages were made for power and gain, and the genetic lines of the families have become intermixed over so many generations that it has caused a brokenness, a sickness, if you will, that won't allow for continued societal growth.

Draco felt a bit disgusted. He knew that inbreeding in the families was a thing. Hell, the Black family especially, chose to marry other family members to keep their lines pure.

"St. Mungo's and the DOM have developed a spell that will allow witches and wizards to find a person that their magical lines can intermix with healthily, that will allow for pregnancy and childbirth. Each of us within the committee has already cast the spell for our own magical matches."

She took a deep breath, looking around the room. "However, there's more to the meeting then just explaining the spell, Mr. Ogden, if you could please continue."

Tiberius Ogden was a formidable man. He stood next to Hermione in the traditional Wizengamot robes, and Draco knew this man held a lot of power within their world.

"Please remember to hold your questions or outbursts until the end of our meeting." he said quickly and sternly, "The Wizengamot has worked with St. Mungo's to draft legislation that will protect the future of our community. As it stands, if we continue to allow mismatched marriages and births to occur, it is likely the magical community will die out completely within two generations."

Beside Draco, Narcissa sucked in a breath between her teeth. Draco furled his eyebrows as he looked at her. Clearly, she had an idea of what was coming next.

"Because of this, we have decided to implement a law that will require Magical citizens of Britain to cast for their magical match or matches. Witches and wizards will be required to marry their matches and procreate with them within a certain timeframe." Ogden spoke sharply. "It is non-negotiable. There will be strict punishments for those who refuse."

As Ogden sat, the room was completely silent. The magical tension in the room was rising, and Draco worried about the outburst to come.

Minerva was the first to speak. "You mean to marry off the magical community and force them to have children, to prevent the death of magical lines? Is that it?"

Hermione looked sadly at the woman who was her friend and mentor. "Yes." she said, "Believe me if there was any other way... I've gone over all the research myself. You know me, I didn't leave a stone unturned. I hate the idea of being forced to procreate or marry someone I do not wish to. But the fact is, the community will die out if we don't do something."

Harry stood then, surprising Draco.

"You all know very well that I've spent my life being manipulated to support the actions of others for the  _greater good_  of society. I was... quite angry when Hermione and Kingsley told me about all of this. But, the Wizarding world is my home. I didn't take the killing curse twice to see it all wiped away."

Murmurs settled around the room after his speech. Of course, Draco thought, the boy-who-lived could rally supporters in nearly anything.

"Why us?" he asked with more than a hint of anger in his voice, "if we're here, there's a reason for it. Why us? Why not just tell us with the rest of the world."

Kingsley chose that moment to take back over the meeting.

"Two reasons. First, we need powerful and influential members of our society to support the law. We aren't asking you to be  _happy_  about the law, but we need more than just Hermione, Harry, and myself to control the masses after we announce it. We expect a lot of anger and we know that asking respected members of our society to speak on the importance of the law to help." He said.

Draco snorted loudly, "I'm sorry, did you say respected?" he laughed lightly, "People still spit at me in the streets!"

Kingsley looked defeated at that moment but quickly schooled his features back to his stoic facade.

"Well, the second reason is that some of you are magical matches to members of the committee. If we can gain your support..." he trailed off.

* * *

The committee had decided to take a short break, to ease the tension in the room and hopefully prevent any outbursts of accidental magic with the fury that had risen in a few of the room's occupants.

Draco paced the floor in the waiting room outside the Minister for Magic office, while Narcissa sat stoically nearby.

"Fuck!" he ranted, not caring about his language, "So we're either here to bring the purebloods in line or because we're matched with someone already! This is ridiculous!"

Narcissa sighed, grabbing Draco's hand and forcing him to stop pacing.

"My son," she said, "I did always wish I could have given you so much more in life. Not just... more things, as you have plenty of that, but... more love, more kindness. I wish I could have given you a house full of siblings to grow up with. I have seen first hand the effects of pureblood inbreeding and I would wish it upon no-one. That is why I quickly had your betrothal with the Greengrass girl undone after your Father was sentenced. I will not send you to a life of a pain, I refuse. You may not be able to choose your spouse in this, son, but you will have children that you can give all your love too. You will not be alone."

Draco sighed, he knew he wanted a large family. He always had. He assumed it would never come to pass, as most people still looked at the Malfoy family as disgusting, either dark or traitorous. Perhaps this was a chance to have children, and maybe he could find friendship with his match, at least.

* * *

As the group regathered, Draco could tell many conversations like his own had happened in the interim. There was still a strong undercurrent of anger in the room, but there was also a resignation to the outcome.

Hermione stood quickly to speak again. "The Department of Mysteries and I have developed a spell that will allow a witch or wizard to find their magical genetic match. It has been greatly changed many times to ensure appropriate matching and fairness for every participant."

"Before we begin casting, for those of you who agree to do so today, you must know something else. Because of the high levels of the familial intermixing present in lines already established in our society, it is possible that a person may receive more than one match. Purebloods can expect to match with a half-blood or muggleborn partner. Halfbloods can match with either purebloods or half-bloods or muggle-borns. Muggleborns are at a distinct disadvantage, as they have the most unique genetic structure, since they don't have any magical lineage, they are able to match with pure or half-bloods, but they are pretty much guaranteed to have more than one match." she rushed out the words, knowing it might cause another uprising in the group.

"I myself have cast, as Kingsley stated earlier, and I have three matches, although I won't be sharing them until all parties are aware of their own matches as well. Each committee member is dedicated to the law, despite our own misgivings, and hope our partners will be as well," she said, before sitting back down.

Tiberius Ogden stood again, "While your casting today is voluntary, you will be required to cast in two weeks when the law goes public. We would ask each of you in attendance today to decide if you can publically support the law, and if you will decide to cast today."

"If we decide not to cast,  _ever_ ," asked Andromeda, "What then?"

"Members of the community who do not cast and follow the law to marry and procreate with their magical matches will be sentenced to imprisonment in Azkaban until they agree to cast. Hopefully, they would choose to cast before completely losing their minds." Ogden responded sharply.

It was a surprise to Draco to hear the next voice speak, "But Sir, with all due respect, not everyone can cast... my parents, they are in St. Mungo's and will be... forever" Neville said quietly.

Hermione chose to speak again. "Neville," she said softly, "There are exceptions made to those who cannot cast with their own free will. It includes medical patients and prisoners. You won't be matched with either, and your parents will be safe."

A look of relief crossed his face. "Alright, I don't like it, you know." Neville said, "But I'll do it. You've never lead me wrong before, Hermione."

Hermione looked grateful, and Draco liked seeing the smile on her face.

"I'll do it too." The words were out of his mouth before he even realized what he was saying. Narcissa gripped his hand beneath the table before agreeing to cast as well.

In the end, the entire room had agreed to cast that day, even Andromeda.

Hermione spoke once more. "We are going to ask you all to wait here. We've set up a small casting room where we will bring you in, one at a time, to cast. Each member of the committee will be there for your casting, but please know we're bound to the secrecy as well. After you cast, you can return to this room. You are free to discuss your results with the other people present today."

* * *

The room was silent as the committee left to prepare for casting through a door to the right of Draco, that he hadn't noticed before.

Andromeda was called first, and she entered the room quietly, and then exited within a matter of minutes. She stood quietly to the side of the room while Luna was called in to cast.

"Narcissa," Andromeda said softly, approaching the Malfoy family, "I... can we...?"

Narcissa stood quickly, grabbing her sister and pulling her into a hug. The look of shock on Andromeda's face was priceless, Draco thought, knowing his Mother's newfound love for affectionate gestures.

"Please, Meda." Narcissa said, "We're family. Let's let it go, be my sister again."

"I have a match," Andromeda said, "No one in the committee, so they must've just wanted me to be a supporter. His name is Martin Wilson. A muggle-born who works in the DMLE."

Luna came back out of the room and Neville entered.

She was as quirky as Draco remembered her being in school, as she loudly announced her match in Dean Thomas, another student from their time at Hogwarts.

When Neville came back out of the room, Draco could tell he was happy.

Occupants continued to flow in and out of the room until it was just he and his Mother left.

Narcissa was called first.

* * *

When Narcissa entered the room, she was surprised to find it was just as large as the room she had left.

A cup of tea was placed in front of her by one of the MInistry's house elves.

Hermione sat in the chair next to her, a bit stiffly, and began to explain the process of casting.

Narcissa listened in with half her attention, nerves grating under her skin as she prepared to bond herself to another, something she never imagined herself doing after losing Lucius to the kiss.

She nodded to Hermione that she understood the process, and cast the spell.

As her results showed on the paper, her eyes swam with tears...

A woman. A muggle-born woman.  _Ella Wright_ , the paper glittered.  
And...  _Harry Potter._ Her eyes rose to the man across the room.

He approached slowly and reached out a hand. "Mrs. Malfoy, you've already saved my life once, and I know this must be very difficult for you, but I owe you a great debt and I will do anything to help make this easier on you. I only wish for some peace and happiness, perhaps for both of us."

A sob left her throat, and Harry escorted her gently back into the conference room.

* * *

Draco saw his Mother come out of the room crying, with Harry-bleeding-Potter's arm wrapped around her shoulder and he stood, ready to whip out his wand and hex the man.

His Mother held a hand in his directions. "It's fine." she croaked, as Harry led her to her seat next to Andromeda. "Go, it's your turn."

Draco was uneasy, leaving his Mother like that, but he turned and entered the room anyway.

Hermione sat next to an empty chair and gestured for him to sit.

"Draco," she said gently, with kindness in her eyes, "Thank you for agreeing to cast today."

He grunted in response, not trusting himself with words.

"The spell is designed to pulse magical Britain and find your magical genetic match or matches. It will read the intention of your personality and heart, and match you with the witches or wizards best fit for you. There is no judgment in this room, as we've all got our own magical matches too." she said.

"Right," he stammered, "Just show me how to do it."

Hermione showed him the incantation and wand movement and Draco sliced his finger, rubbing it across the parchment in front of him, and cast the spell.

He should have expected, given that he'd been called here, that  _she_  was his match.

 _Hermione Jean Granger._  Her name glittered on the parchment and he looked at her. A soft smile on her face, curls bouncing around her head. "It's okay," she whispered.

It was then that he noticed a second name forming on the paper, and felt Hermione slip her hand around his.

_Severus Tobias Snape._

He looked at Hermione before a flash of black cloth drew his attention. His breath was coming in gasps as he looked at the man lowering the hood of his thick black robe.

"You're dead," he gasped out. "You can't..."

Hermione rubbed his back gently, "It's real." she whispered to him.


	11. Chapter 11

Hey all!

Gosh dang, sorry it took me so long to update! (I know it hasn't been a terribly long time, but I digress.)

As always, I appreciate SO MUCH your reviews, follows, favorites, etc. It just like definitely makes me smile!

I feel a bit terrible for taking so long to update, I am sorry! I have come to the story several times, jotted down a few lines, and then nothing. Absolutely nothing. My muse just went on vacation or something. Life has been tough lately and I think it's just bleeding into everything I do.

To those of you who may be with me in hurting the last week(s) as you watched the country go to shit over the Kavanaugh hearings and all the incredibly ridiculous trigger things that are making their way around FB, IG, Tumblr... please remember it's okay to turn that shit off and say that you aren't okay. It's okay to be not okay. It's hard to watch. It's hard to hear. It's hard when you have your own shit that you've buried and this feels like digging it up from deep down in the earth, but we'll all get through it.

**Enjoy :)**

* * *

Draco was hyperventilating, looking at the man standing stoically in thick black robes just steps from him. His brows furrowed in confusion as he took in the sight of Severus Snape.

Hermione was rubbing gentle circles onto his back, as he gasped for breath. He was shocked, not just with his matches, but with the fact that a man he once respected and admired was alive in front of him, and he was going to marry him. He couldn't imagine the Snape he knew agreeing to something like this, but he'd also thought the man had been dead for several years. He couldn't quite fathom that his once Potions Professor was into guys.

Draco still had his hand clasped around Hermione's, he was probably squeezing a bit harder than he should, but his head felt like it was full of fog and his legs were trembling. He turned to look at her. She had a gentle, concerned look in her eyes.

"I know, it's a lot," she said to him, "I fainted, and Harry stunned him, so I promise you're managing just fine."

Draco snorted, imagining the boy-who-lived stunning Snape.

"We know you have questions," Snape spoke softly, a tone that Draco had never heard from the man. Snape looked at Kingsley, who was standing on the sidelines of the room, "Can we have some privacy now, Minister? Draco was the last to cast today."

Kingsley nodded sharply, "Of course, Severus." he said, "Mrs. Malfoy is still in the conference room, I will see that she gets home safely."

With that, the members of the committee strode silently out of the room, leaving just Hermione, Severus, Draco, and the other hooded Unspeakable.

Draco glared at the man silently, before whispering to Hermione, "Why aren't they leaving too?"

Severus walked over to the hooded man, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Draco, there's much you'll hear over the next few hours and much of it will be overwhelming for you." Severus said in a gentle tone, one that Draco had never heard from the man before, "I imagine even now you're feeling confused, probably a bit angry, and upset. Please know I will explain everything I can to you about my presence here, but before we do so, Hermione has something else to tell you."

Draco looked between Severus and Hermione, wondering when the two of them became on a first-name basis. Confused was the  _least_  of his emotions, as he pondered the law, his Mother being escorted from the room by Harry-bleeding-Potter, and why Severus seemed so  _nice._

Hermione was still rubbing circles onto his back, and though his breathing had steadied, he didn't bother telling her to stop. He'd had so little human contact since his stay in Azkaban, that he didn't want to deny himself a kind touch.

"Obviously, you've gathered that I'm your match, according to the spell," she said to Draco. "I cast the spell just a while ago as well, and after throwing a tantrum, fainting, and then changing a bunch of particulars to the law and spell, I accepted that this is my future. Because I'm muggleborn, it was likely that I'd have more than one match, and I did. In fact, I had three. You, Severus, and one other."

Draco raised one eyebrow in response, glancing at the man in the hooded cloak.

"Yes, one other," she continued, "Severus has been working with him in the Department of Mysteries for several years and they're close friends, which makes this whole thing a bit easier."

She nodded at the man in the cloak, indicating her desire to have him reveal himself.

Draco stared at the man next to Severus, a mix of fear and anxiety on his face.

"As you can see, Severus is not the only surprise to arise from the law. Sirius Black is also alive and I will be marrying him as well." Hermione said, "That means the four of us are going to have to all live together and work together to support the families we'll soon have."

Draco scrubbed his hands across his face, trying to ease some of the tension from his body before he spoke.

"How is this happening?" he asked, looking at Severus. "And shouldn't you be in prison?" He quickly added on, while pointing at Sirius.

* * *

Outside of the room, Harry had settled himself next to Narcissa. She had stopped crying fairly quickly and was sitting quietly with a pensive look on her face.

"Are you okay," he asked her gently.

She shifted slightly, before looking at him. "Mr. Potter, the Ministry is forcing me to marry a man the age of my son. I'm expected to birth two more children, at the same time my  _grandchildren_  will be born. My son is in there now, the last one to be seen and I can only imagine what's happening behind that door." she huffed.

Harry let out a small chuckle in spite of himself.

"I think Draco will be okay. Probably speechless, for a while, but he'll be okay." Harry said. "But, we should maybe talk about this, not about Draco."

She stared blankly ahead, not bothering to meet his eyes.

"Mr. Potter, please know that I have nothing against you. I owe you a great deal, as does my son. You've had a rotten go of things for most of your life, as we all know, based on the spreads I've read in the Prophet. This is just another burden our world is placing upon your shoulders." Narcissa sighed, forgetting all the pure-blood etiquette she'd been raised with, before laughing as she murmured. "My sister is probably rolling in her grave. Me, marrying Harry Potter, and a muggleborn girl! A girl!"

Harry reached out and gently took Narcissa's hand in his own. He felt her stiffen at his touch, but he continued to rub his thumb along her knuckles in what he hoped was a soothing gesture.

"Well, it's shocking for all of us." he said to her, "But, I can tell you that despite the way we've found ourselves in this situation, I'm determined to make the best of it. You've saved my life. I owe you everything.  _This world_  owes you everything. I never imagined I'd marry without love, or that I'd marry  _two_  women, or that I'd be forced to have children."

He took a large breath, pausing to gather his thoughts.

"But Narcissa, I  _do_  want a family. I want a wife. I want children. I want to come home to laughter and kisses and smiles and I want to feel wanted, something I never had as a child. I don't want to bring life to this world only for those children to be resented because their parents were forced into marriage by an archaic Ministry of Magic." he continued, "I know I probably sound mental, but I want  _love_  in my life. I'm willing to make the effort. With you, and with Ms. Wright, when we meet her. I want to get to know you both. I want to make you both happy, whatever it takes."

He grew quiet, as Narcissa contemplated his words.

He felt a small squeeze on his hand, realizing he still held hers within his grasp.

"My marriage to Lucius was arranged," she said softly, "My Father wanted nothing more for the Black and Malfoy families to unite. It was a powerful union. I respected him, for a time. Until the Dark Lord came. I begged him, many times, not to follow that wretch, but it was out of my hands. I only could do what I was able to protect Draco."

She raised her head to look in his eyes, "I can't promise to love you, or to make you happy, or to not be afraid, or overwhelmed, or angry. But I can promise to try." she said.

A small smile quirked the corners of Harry's lips.

"That's all I can ask of you," he said, raising the hand he still clutched to press a kiss on her fingers.

* * *

Nearly an hour had passed, and Harry and Narcissa had settled into a comfortable silence while they awaited the final occupant of the conference room. The other meeting attendees had been seen out of the office, and a stillness settled within the space.

Harry was sipping lightly on a cup of hot tea when Hermione slipped out of the meeting room and walked to stand near him.

It took her by surprise when Narcissa spoke first.

"I've been sitting here for an hour, wondering why it's taking my son so long to come out of that room," she said in a low voice, "And I know that for the rest of us, our sessions were in and out within just minutes."

Hermione wasn't sure what to say, or what the woman was getting at.

"It occurs to me then, that something  _big_ must be happening in there. And as you're in there... I'm assuming part of that includes you?" Narcissa asked politely.

Hermione was taken aback by the bluntness of the question but quickly regained her composure.

"Mrs. Malfoy, I'm sorry you've been waiting out here for so long." she rushed to explain, "There are... extenuating circumstances with Draco that required some extra time. I've come out here to request that Harry and you join us in the room now. Draco would like to share his matches with you, and I think he's at least guessed at yours." she said with a small smile.

Narcissa stood quickly, and Harry reached out to support her with a hand under her arm.

"But, before we go in..." Hermione continued, "You should know that there's some rather shocking information that's about to be shared with you. I think you'll be quite pleased, once you process it. We've all reacted a bit differently. I fainted. Harry stormed the room calling for Aurors, Draco was... well quite overwhelmed with emotion. We all are."

Narcissa looked at the girl and nodded her head sharply. What could possibly be more overwhelming then everything she'd already experienced this day?

"And, of course, what you hear and see in this room still falls under the confidentiality umbrella we discussed earlier," Hermione interjected.

"Miss Granger," Narcissa said, growing impatient. "This day has been nothing but emotional. Can we just get on with it?"

Hermione consented, leading the two back to the door she'd come from. Harry placed a hand on the small of Narcissa's back, preparing to steady her against the shock he knew she'd be up against in the next moments.

Hermione rapped on the door, and when it cracked open to reveal Severus Snape, Harry caught Narcissa as her knees gave out.


	12. Chapter 12

Hey friends,

As always, I continue to be inspired and incredibly thankful for your continued reviews/follows/faves on this story. I know I've not been updating frequently, and I'm sorry about that.

To the guest who left the long, lovely review re: Kavanaugh, Assault, Narcissa/Harry, etc. THANK YOU. That seriously made my day when I read it, and I've gone back to it a few times to just remind myself that I'm not alone in all of it. Thank you.

Hope you all love this next chapter!

**Enjoy :)**

* * *

**Daily Prophet**  
**June 24, 2002  
** **Special Evening Edition**

__**Wizengamot Holds Posthumous War Trials!**  
House of Black Renewed! War Hero Lives!  
Padma Patil, Journalist

_You've heard it here first, Ladies and Lords!_   
_The Daily Prophet brings you the exciting news that Lord Sirius Black is alive and well!_

_Sirius Black, Born to Walburga and Orion Black in 1959, most notoriously known for his role in the First Wizarding War, including his internment in Azkaban for the death of Peter Pettigrew and a dozen muggles, LIVES._

_Minister for Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt, held a press conference this morning, inviting reporters and journalists to meet in the Wizengamot chambers, where the entire Wizengamot was also summoned._

_The Minister, whom some may have argued had lost the plot, sealed the chamber and began a hearing for one Sirius Black, to plead the case that the man was **innocent**  of his accused crimes, wrongly interred in Azkaban for 12 years, and should be posthumously pardoned for the charges leveled against him._

_Young Harry Potter, the savior of the Wizarding World, testified on behalf of Lord Black, who was also Mr. Potter's legal guardian through the will and testament of Lord James Potter and his wife, Lily Potter. He shared memories of Mr. Peter Pettigrew, alive in the boy's 3rd year, admitting to sharing the secret-kept location of the Potter family, and to murdering those muggles to frame Sirius Black. He also shared memories of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's resurrection, which Pettigrew played a most vital role, and memories of the death of Pettigrew, choked by his own metal hand, a gift from the mysterious Dark Lord._

_Miss Hermione Granger, commonly known as the brightest witch of our age, was also in attendance, testifying to the events of Sirius Black's escape from custody in 1993. Shockingly, Miss Granger assisted in the freeing of Lord Bthe lack, via the use of a Ministry-issued time turner, and the help and guidance of deceased Headmaster of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore._

_The Wizengamot voted unanimously to pardon Lord Black of accused crimes. (see page 12 for more on the accused crimes and testimonies were given.)_

_Minister Shaklebolt continued the session to hold another posthumous war trial for Hogwarts Potions Professor and Headmaster Severus Snape, a known Death Eater._

_The chambers were chaotic with the announcement of this trial, but Minister Shaklebolt quickly brought the room to order._

_Harry Potter once again testified, and the emotional testimony rang heavily with the occupants of the room. The young man spoke of his Professor rather admirably, spinning the story of a man who grew up loving a girl that would turn him away in the end, and that girl was Lily Evans, who would go on to become Lily Potter._

_Harry Potter told the gathered crowd that Severus Snape had worked diligently as a spy for the Order of The Pheonix for the course of both wizarding wars. His work as a spy saved hundreds of lives, including that of Mr. Potter and his young friends._

_On hand to give testimony to this fact were high ranking members of the Order of the Pheonix, Minerva McGonagall, and Arthur Weasley._

_Most shockingly, however, was the appearance of Albus Dumbledore, through Wizarding portrait. Of all the crimes charged against Mr. Severus Snape, the most heinous was the murder of Headmaster Dumbledore._

_Dumbledore spoke reverently of Mr. Snape and his duties as a spy for the Order. He wove a tale of heartache, loss, fear, and grief. This reporter was not the only person in the room who was openly crying as Albus Dumbledore spoke for his friend. Yes, his friend. You've heard it here first. Albus Dumbledore told the Wizengamot of his order to Severus Snape, under an existing vow of fealty, to have Mr. Snape commit the murder of Albus Dumbledore to save the eternal soul of one Draco Malfoy._

_Called to testify in this matter were both remaining members of the Malfoy family. Narcissa Malfoy told the gathered audience of her plea to Mr. Snape to protect her son, Draco, and the unbreakable vow that Mr. Snape made to do just that. Young Lord Malfoy spoke of Mr. Snape's continued support before and after his orders to kill Headmaster Dumbledore, including Snape's pressure to have the Malfoy family hidden by the Order of the Pheonix to protect them._

_After hours of pensive memories and testimony were presented on behalf of Mr. Severus Snape, the Wizengamot voted, once again unanimously, to posthumously pardon Mr. Severus Snape of all crimes related to the Wizarding Wars._

_But the story continues, dear readers. As the crowd gathered their belongings to leave, Minister Kingsley Shaklebolt called us to order, indicating that the day's events were not yet complete. He allowed a short break (for we'd been interred in the chambers since the early morning) and after a quick lunch, we gathered again in the stone rooms of the Wizengamot._

_If you thought the trials of Lord Sirius Black and Mr. Severus Snape were shocking, wait until you hear the rest!_

_Minister Shaklebolt told the story of the two men's passing. Lord Black, passed through the veil right here in the Department of Mysteries in June of 1996, when Harry Potter and his classmates battled Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters for the prophecy regarding Lord Potter. His death was not well documented at that time, because of his status as an escaped Azkaban convict._

_Many of us were already aware of the circumstances that led to the death of Mr. Severus Snape, attacked by Lord Voldemort's familiar, Nagini, and left for dead on the floor of the Shrieking Shack at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, during what is commonly known as the Final Battle, occurring on May 2, 1998. His attack was witnessed by Mr. Potter, Miss Granger, and Mr. Ronald Weasley._

_Minister Shaklebolt created a wave of chaos when he told the gathered crowd that both men were **alive.**_ To _say that shock was rampant in the chambers would be an understatement._

_While the circumstances surrounding their return-to-the-living have not been made public, the Wizengamot was briefed and agreed that the means were not dark nor necromantic, and the pardons held._

_Lord Sirius Black will be claiming his rightful title, and the Black Estates, which had passed to Lord Harry Potter, was returned to Lord Black by Lord Potter, with the exception of Grimmauld Place, the home that Lord Potter resides._

_Both men currently hold positions within the Department of Mysteries, working as researches for the Unspeakables. Neither were available for comment._

_For more information on these men, their histories including employment, political stances, and comments regarding their lives made by the Wizengamot, members of the Order of the Pheonix, including Mr. Harry Potter and Miss Hermione Granger, please turn to page 13!_

_We're expecting much in the coming days from these men! Why have they waited so long to come forward? Why are they coming forward now?_  
 _Stay tuned to the Daily Prophet for all your news_!

* * *

Severus, Sirius, Draco, and Hermione had gathered in Hermione's small cottage in muggle London. They'd decided her home was the most reasonable place to meet to preserve their privacy within the Wizarding World, as the only people who were aware of the location of the flat were Harry Potter and Luna Lovegood.

When the Daily Prophet arrived, moments after they'd stepped through the floo, the four were anxious to read the story published regarding the hearings in the Wizengamot that day.

Severus snatched the paper from the owl, before quickly scanning over the article and handing it to Sirius, who did the same, and the paper made it's round, finishing with Hermione.

She sunk into the well-worn couch with a small sigh. "It could have been worse." she said quietly, "Thank Merlin it wasn't Rita."

"Rita?" Sirius asked, "The one who wrote that bull about you and Harry during the tournament?"

"HA!" Draco snorted loudly, startling Hermione and the others in the room.

Hermione tried valiantly to hold her chuckle, but it burst from her as a loud guffaw, and soon she and Draco had dissolved into a fit of laughter, while Severus and Sirius looked on in confusion.

"Care to explain, kitten?" Sirius asked when the two had settled down again.

"Well, in fourth year, it was Draco and Pansy feeding Skeeter all those rumors about Harry and me!" Hermione laughed.

"And you're... not hexing him?" Snape questioned, knowing the girl had a penchant for revenge.

"Well, no," she said, looking gently at Draco. "We talked about this already, when I represented him after the war. His Father was pressuring him to make an impact in Harry's life. To distract him during the tournament. In the end, it was rather harmless. Besides Skeeter got hers, didn't she?"

This set the two to laughing again, while the older men just looked on quietly, enjoying the feeling of joy that was radiating from Draco and Hermione.

"You have to tell them" gasped Draco, holding his side where a stitch was cramping him.

"Oh lord," Hermione moaned. "I still can't believe I did that!"

"What!" Severus demanded, tempted to hex the both of them still to get some answers.

"I found out that year that Skeeter was an unregistered animagus, and not the fun or noble kind like you Sirius," she explained. "I didn't like the articles she was writing, so I demanded that she stop. She refused and tried to escape Hogwarts by shifting. She wasn't expecting me to capture her in an unbreakable glass jar and keep her there."

"FOR FOUR WEEKS!" Draco nearly shouted, before dissolving into laughter again.

Sirius and Severus could only smirk as they watched the two laugh and smile.

The shared a glance, and in it was the promise of a happy future, something neither man would turn down.


	13. Chapter 13

I continue to be enamored with the response to this story. I have been feeling a bit stuck, in the process of writing it, and reading your reviews and comments really brightens my mood and inspires me to keep going on it.  
This is my first fic, so I promise I won't be giving it up! I will honestly try to update at least weekly!

A few people have suggested my characters are a bit OOC.  
Duh. I hate to laugh, but of course they are!

Right now the story feels really light and loving and fun, but I just want to remind ya'll that it's gonna get kinda nasty soon so don't get to comfortable! Dark is my  _thing_. haha.

**Enjoy :)**

* * *

Following the article in the Daily Prophet, life had gotten a bit wild for Sirius Black and Severus Snape. They'd both decided to take extended leaves of absence from their positions at the ministry in order to sort out their return to the land of the living, including their inheritances and estates. There were meetings with Gringotts, trips to visit dilapidated old properties that had been passed down through generations of their families, but each night, the two men floo'ed to a small cottage in London, where they met with Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger, in an effort to continue to get to know one another.

Today, the quartet planned to visit some Wizarding real estate. Sirius had no desire to live in any of the inhabitable Black properties. He'd already listed the remaining properties for sale. The Prince manor that Severus inherited was beyond destroyed, after years of having no inhabitants in residence. Malfoy Manor was occupied, of course, by Narcissa Malfoy, and her sister Andromeda was in residence with Teddy Lupin, as well.

The group had gathered a list of properties to inspect, each one meeting a set of standards set forth by the group. It was a logical list if a bit overwhelming for Hermione.

They would require four en-suites, one for each of them. At least eight additional bedrooms for the children that would soon be coming. (Six of them Hermione's children, and at least two between Draco and Severus). Severus and Draco required a large space where they could create a state of the art potions lab. Sirius wanted enough outdoor space to build a Quidditch pitch, and Hermione simply desired a large, welcoming library.

After several heated discussions, the group had agreed that the family home would require several house elves, especially once children were being born. Hermione had an appointment to meet with the Department of Care and Control of Magical Creatures to learn about house elf bonds and what to expect when taking in at least four elves.

The first property the group was planning to visit was a large manor, previously muggle, that the realtor realized could make a wonderful Wizarding property based on its location over two ley lines. Sirius arrived, with Hermione tucked under an arm, followed by Severus, who had a hand on the small of Draco's back. The two men looked fairly comfortable together, but Hermione knew the two were nervous about their new relationship.

The home was large, surrounded by intricately manicured gardens, large fields, and in the distance, an apple orchard. Sirius let out a small whistle as he took in the expanse of property. Hermione, though impressed, was distressed at the display of wealth and privilege this home provided.

The realtor arrived moments later, leading the group up the cobblestone drive to the front doors. Draco let out a small groan when he noticed the door knockers were in the shape of a lion's head.

"God, we're in for it now," he mumbled under his breath, spurring a round of laughter from the two Gryffindors.

As they let themselves into a beautiful marble-floored foyer, Hermione had a feeling that if the rest of the house were an iota as beautiful as the room they were in, she'd never want to leave.

Severus took in the room, before suggesting the four separate and look independently at the house, to each be able to make their own decisions regarding how they felt about the space.

Hermione went off in search of the library. She was not disappointed when she found it. It took up an entire corner of the home and was open to both the first and second floors. She felt like Belle in Beauty in the Beast when she stood in the middle of the room, a wide smile on her face.

Sirius turned and walked right back out of the house. The gardens were beautiful and immaculate. Rose bushes lined brick pathways, small ponds were scattered throughout, and he laughed when he saw a small group of duckings flapping about. Beyond the gardens, a large grass expanse stretched, and he thought this would be an ideal place to build a quidditch pitch, perhaps some horse stables (he hadn't ridden since childhood), and the orchard screamed "cozy". He loved it already.

Severus headed down, to the basement of the property. It was left open and unfinished, with the exception of a large wine cellar the muggles who'd lived in the home previously had designed. To most, an unfinished basement would have been a burden, but Severus saw the potential in the space and couldn't wait to turn into a sprawling lab where he could continue his research. He knew within a few years he'd be working from home in the future, as children were born to their family. Hermione wasn't the type to stay home, and he didn't really know, other than a potions apprenticeship, what Draco planned to do with his own life as far as a career.

Draco was the first one to bother looking at the bedrooms of the home. There were four wings of the house, it rivaled Malfoy Manor in size, something that didn't bother him in the slightest, as it reminded him of his own childhood. Each wing was two stories, housed an en-suite and one bedroom on the main level, and three bedrooms on the second level. The en-suite included a large bedroom, sitting room, two walk-in closets, and a spacious bathroom. The adjacent bedroom was large, plenty of space for a nursery, he thought, with an adjoining bathroom. The bedrooms on the second level were no smaller, and they shared one bathroom. He could already picture them full of children.

Despite the loneliness of his childhood and the despair he'd felt so far in his adulthood, Draco  _longed_ for a family. He'd never believed in arranged pureblood marriages, and when his father died, he'd burned every request that he found for marriage contracts. After his stay in Azkaban, he'd found that people were quite leery of him. He hadn't secured even a single date and had resigned himself to a life alone, without love or even friendship.

As frustrating as this marriage law was, Draco found that he couldn't be bothered to even be upset. He already admired Hermione. She'd fought valiantly for him during his trials, and he knew she'd felt horrible when he'd been sentenced to two years in Azkaban. Besides his mother, she was the only person to visit him during his time there. He'd hoped one day to build a friendship with her, and now he knew he had that chance, and the idea of loving her warmed his heart immensely.

As for Severus, Draco respected him. He'd heard Potter's testimony about Severus' love for Lily Potter, and it was heartbreaking, to Draco, to think of the stern, stoic man as heartbroken and alone. He was shocked when Severus was his match, but they been exchanging letters over the week and had met up to brew once, and Draco appreciated Severus' wit, dry humor, and snarky attitude. Where Hermione was a shining bright light, Severus was a sturdy brick wall, and Draco found the balance between the two of them to be quite endearing. He couldn't wait to be with them if he were honest with himself.

As the four reconverged nearly an hour later in the beautiful marble foyer, they all knew that the others were in love with the house. Hermione spoke up first.

"So, we all love it then?" she laughed, looking at the men who would soon be her husbands, a blush creeping up her neck.

Draco smiled widely, "It's perfect."

"Did you see the outside, too! The gardens are lush and vibrant, and the orchard has hundreds of apple trees!" Sirius exclaimed excitedly.

Severus just smiled softly, enjoying the lightness that had descended upon his life in the last weeks.

It was obvious the group agreed on the luxurious home, and when the realtor joined them for discussion, they were quick to make an offer on the property.

With a little arguing, the four decided to split the cost of the property equally. Each one volunteered for tasks they'd complete to help make the house a home. Draco would shop for furniture, Sirius would research and cast extensive wards, Severus would work to remodel areas of the home that needed work, including his own potions lab, and Hermione, of course, dedicated herself to the library.

With their future home settled, the four returned to Hermione's cottage, where tea and biscuits were served, Sirius flopped onto the couch and flipped on the telly. Severus perused the bookshelves, and Draco engaged in quiet conversation with Hermione. Each of them knew that once the law became public, life would get hectic and hellacious, and they took this time to enjoy the calm, and each other.


	14. Chapter Fourteen

I love that you guys love this story. Thank you for the reviews and messages and favorites and follows and all that jazz. I know I have been remiss in my update activity and I thank you for your continued patience.

And to be honest, you may be waiting awhile between updates on this and my other stories because my life is a hot mess right now and while I enjoy writing and I probably have the  _time_  to write, I don't much have the emotional capacity to do so at times. I'm focusing on my family at the moment and just really that's so important. I promise not to go more than a month, and if you are eager for updates, you can send me a message and I'll  _try_  to get to it, but still.

Additionally, it's November, which means NaNoWriMo! Woo! And I'm taking on a Harry/Hermione ABO fic for that, and it's also slow going but I want to FINISH it in November, so that's another stupid focus of mine.

But, I digress. Here's more!

**Enjoy :)**

* * *

**Daily Prophet**  
**August 19, 2002  
** **Special Monday Evening Edition**

__**Wizengamot Instates Marriage Law!**  
War Heroes Already Matched!  
Padma Patil, Journalist

_The Wizengamot held a fully seated hearing today to announce the passing of Marriage Law legislation.  
The esteemed body invited 20 members of the press, including myself, to sit in the closed session and report on the newly passed law._

_Here at the Daily Prophet, we report the facts, and only the facts, something our new ownership has been incredibly proud to do following the Second Wizarding War._

_Here are the facts, ladies and gentleman._

**1.** Witches and Wizards between the ages of 21 and 65 will be required to participate. Those between ages 66 and 80 will be encouraged to participate, though it is voluntary. Anyone over age 80 is exempt. Those under 21 are exempt until they reach age 21, at which time they will be required to participate. Parties will be matched within a 25 year age range. Matches outside of that range would be within the discretion of individual parties.

**2.**  Individuals will be summoned to the ministry to cast a specialized spell designed to pair them with their best magical match. This will occur randomly, and individuals must respond within 30 days of their summons. Parties will then have 10 days after their summons to either accept their match or be interred in Azkaban until they are willing to accept their match.

**3.** Parties will have six months from accepting their match to finalize their marriage.

**4.** Parties will have one year from their marriage date to become pregnant with their first child.  
A second child must be conceived within five years after the birth of the first child.

**5a.** Married couples will be required to report to St. Mungo's for genetic fertility testing. Those with compatible results will be required to produce two children within the same timeline regardless of prior children born to that marriage.  
 **5b.** Couples who do not have compatible results will be required to cast the magical matching spell. These couples will have two options.  
\- Couples may dissolve their current marriage bonds and cast independently of one another. They would fall under rules 1-4 above.  
\- Couples may continue their marriage and cast together to find matches compatible with both magical lines. They would both fall under rules 1-4 with any/all matches found.

_Those are the guidelines, and we'll be covering the public opinion of those rules in the days to come.  
_ _**BUT FIRST.** _

_There's more you need to know!_  
Set into the guidelines of the law is a series of bylaws designed to protect the casters and ensure healthy matches.  
They are as follows.

**1.** The casting of the matching spell is intent based, meaning that matches will be made according to the preferences of the caster. This can include heterosexual and same-sex preferences. Casting may also include  _both_ preferences for those that wish.

**2.** The Ministry of Magic will subsidize care at St. Mungo's Hospital for couples choosing to utilize fertility treatments or sexual performance enhancing potions.

**3.** St. Mungo's Hospital will also be providing potions and long-term transfiguration to assist same-sex couples conceive, as well as couples who wish the male partner to carry and birth their magical children.

**4.** The Ministry of Magic will cover the entirety of the medical cost for pregnancy, childbirth, and well-child examinations for the first two children born of each magical match. Additional children born out of the magical matches would not be subsidized.

**5.** The Ministry of Magic will pay entirely for the educational costs of the first two children born of each magical match, prior to formal Wizarding schooling, this will take place in specialized primary schooling environments to be developed in the next two years. Formal schooling, beginning at age eleven, will be fully compensated Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Durmstrang Institute, or Beaubaxton's Academy.

**6.** Long-term patients at St. Mungo's and those interred within the walls of Azkaban Prison will be excluded from the magical matching spell. Should a patient be released from care, or a prisoner released from their sentence, they will be required to cast for a magical match.

_But perhaps the most important part of the law is the last clause buried within the legislation, dear readers.  
_ _With the threat of war barely behind us, it seems the Ministry is willing to garner no risks to the safety of our populace._

_The magical matching spell is designed to create only safe, nurturing matches. With lingering fanaticism of blood purity on the fringes of society, the Wizengamot is taking precautions to ensure those who may harbor malicious or fatal intent towards another are not matched._

_Those with darkened or fractured magical cores will have no matches when casting the spell. These witches and wizards will be investigated thoroughly for the use of dark magic, as the fracturing of a magical core only comes from an inherent darkness within a magic user._

_**For more information on the magical matching spell, it's creators and our predictions on upcoming matches, see page six!** _

* * *

Severus tossed the paper down onto the large oak table that he'd gathered around with the four members of his soon to be family. Frustration was evident on his face, and the room nearly crackled with the tension.

"How bad is it?" Hermione asked gently, not daring to pick up the paper herself.

Severus snorted back a laugh. "It's not." he drawled, "Not really. But, they know that Sirius and I developed the original spell and that you made nearly a million modifications to the spell and the law."

Draco had picked up the paper and flipped to the gossip rag featured on page six, barking out a loud laugh and exclaiming, "Oi, Granger, you should see these predictions!"

Hermione pulled the paper to rest in front of her, skimming along the predicted matches that the reporters at the Prophet had laid out.

Before she even realized it, she was giggling foolishly, breaking into hearty laughter as she clasped her hands over her mouth in an attempt to reign in control over herself. Draco had plopped his head onto the table and was clutching his sides guffawing loudly.

Sirius and Severus shared a glance, before each grabbing for the predictions.

Sirius got to them first and proceeded to read them out loud.

"Oh, sweet Merlin" he exclaimed, "Well they got it partly right, didn't they?"

Hermione exploded into another rounded of giggles, and Severus simply arched an eyebrow at the three of them, waiting to hear what it is they found so hilarious.

"Hermione Granger with Draco Malfoy, Harry Potter, and Ronald Weasley" Sirius choked out, "Oh god, Prince of Slytherin and the Golden Trio!"

"Keep going" Hermione gasped out.

"Sirius Black with Minerva McGonagall and Pomona Sprout" Sirius huffed, mock gagging at the idea.

At that, the loud, booming, warm laugh of Severus Snape filled the room. "Merlin," he whispered. "Minerva would have your balls for dinner, Black!"

"Just you wait, Snape!" Black retorted, sending Draco and Hermione into another fit of laughter. Hermione, in her mirth, had slid off her chair and was sprawled on the floor, tears running down her cheeks as she gasped for air.

"Severus Snape" Sirius announced, "with Poppy Pomfrey, Narcissa Black, and Molly Weasley!"

"For fuck sake" Severus huffed, "I would take Azkaban."

It was the idea of Severus, stoic, terse, tense Severus with the harridan Molly Weasley that sent Sirius into hysterics. "Oh god, she'd never stop putting food in front of you, mate." he laughed, "And all those damn sweaters. Can you imagine? Black ones with a big S? Do you think she'd make the S a snake for you?"

* * *

The next morning, the four were summoned once again to the Ministry, and as they sequestered themselves in the large conference room they'd become so familiar with over the past few weeks, they greeted the others who'd gathered in the space with them. Gone was the long table and stiff chairs, and in their place were comfortable loveseats, sofas, and lounges. Small tables peppered the room, with water and tea.

Harry sat next to Narcissa, an arm stretched on the back of the loveseat they occupied, fingers playing gently with the ends of her hair. Hermione had never seen the woman looked so relaxed, and it warmed her heart to see a smile playing on Narcissa's face as she chatted with her soon-to-be husband.

Hermione was lounging gracefully between Severus and Draco on a rich chestnut sofa, and Draco saw where her gaze was lingering and leaned over to whisper softly to her.

"Mother adores him, you know?" Draco said, "He's been going to the Manor, helping her move all her belongings out to the dower house they chose to keep as their family home. They've spent a lot of time together and apparently he's beyond kind and she thinks she could really love him, in time."

Hermione smiled gently. She felt the same way about Draco, Severus, and Sirius, and had really enjoyed the time they'd spent together. They each complimented her, and each other, in different ways that she knew could create a strong family for them.

She grasped Draco's hand tightly while leaning back against Severus. "I think I can understand that feeling," she whispered, sending him a small smile.

Before he could answer, Kingsley Shaklebolt strode into the room, but Hermione didn't miss the grin that had broken across Draco's face, either.

"Thank you for being here," Kingsley said, "again."

A small round of laughter went around the room.

"We're hoping to gain your permission and input on releasing the current matches to the Prophet tomorrow, and want to ensure we provide you with security, privacy, or whatever you may need during the chaos that is sure to follow." Kingsley explained, "I'm sure we've all had a good laugh at the proposed matches, but the Ministry feels the sooner we can get the jump on announcing current matches, the sooner we can implement the summons to cast. Our society is going to be looking at the current matches to determine the safety of their own matches."

Heads were nodding around the room, and Harry was whispering to Narcissa, who was nodding her head in agreement to whatever he was whispering.

"Minister," Harry interrupted, "Do you think it would help if some of us gave interviews to the Prophet as well?"

"Well, it would be useful for the public to hear of the success of your matches from your own mouths, I suppose" the Minister answered.

"We'll do it, then," Harry said, "We'll need to check with Ella to be sure, but we're willing."

It was Severus who offered on behalf on Hermione, Sirius, and Draco. The four had already discussed the probability of doing an interview and had decided that opening their new home to a reporter would be a great way to show the world that this was a  _real_  thing between them and that they were openly accepting and willing to go along with the Ministry's legislation.

"The four of us are also willing," Severus drawled, sarcasm dripping from his voice, although Hermione knew that was more a defense mechanism these days than anything else.

Kingsley nodded. "Perfect, if any other matches are willing, please speak with my receptionist on your way out and we'll contact you to schedule an interview and go over the basics of what should be kept in confidence in regards to the matching and law."

The remainder of the time was dedicated to each group discussing their matches with Kingsley's receptionist, who would be sharing that information in turn with the Prophet.

It was quiet, and the tension that was slowly creeping into the room only belayed the fact that each person in attendance knew the proverbial shit was about to hit the fan, come press time.


	15. Chapter 15

Y'all continue to overwhelm me with your love for this story and I only hope that I can continue making you guys squeal in excitement when you read it!

I know you've been waiting quite a while for an update and I do apologize for that, it'll be slow going for a bit here as I've got a lot of stuff going on in my life at the moment, but the fic is not and will not be abandoned! This is a fairly short chapter, but I promise to make it up to you in the next one, which will be at least double the length and juicy as heck.

**Enjoy :)**

* * *

**Daily Prophet  
** **August 20, 2002  
** **Special Tuesday Morning Edition**

_**Controversial Marriage Law Matches Announced!  
Citizens to be Summoned!** _

_Padma Patil, Journalist_

_At an exclusive interview with Kingsley Shacklebolt, Minister of Magic, this Daily Prophet reporter was the first to hear of a handful of matches in place under the new controversial Marriage Law implemented by the Wizengamot. Minister Shacklebolt discussed the law, including the development of the matching spell, the need for citizens of Wizarding Britain to comply, and the safety measure implemented to protect citizens._

_Minister Shakebolt is one of the many volunteers to cast the magical matching spell, and he tells us that every person who played a part in the development, research, and implementation of the spell and law guidelines have cast as well, a symbol of unity and support for what is bound to cause strife and heartache within our community._

_"The Ministry understands that it can be very upsetting, stressful, and frustrating to be told that you'll have to marry a partner, or partners, not of your own choosing." Shacklebolt said, "The matches that have already been cast have been seeing great success in developing their own friendships and romantic relationships. We have had no complaints or issues with any of the matches already cast."_

_Minister Shaklebolt briefly discussed his own match, with Muggleborn Captain of the Holyhead Harpies, Gwenog Jones. "We have developed a close friendship, and I thoroughly enjoy her company. She understands what it's like to be in the spotlight, away from home, working long hours, and I appreciate her acceptance of that in our partnership. She has an additional match, most Muggleborns do, but I am not at liberty to speak of that relationship, I apologize." Shaklebolt told us. "We've purchased a home in Muggle London, and plan to fully cooperate with every aspect of the marriage law immediately."_

_Matches that have been already completed have been filed with the Department of Magical Records. These are sealed records, and only matches that have been voluntarily disclosed will be shared with the public. Matches were completed in the month of June, leaving these couples with only 4 months to finalize their marriages._

_The Daily Prophet has secured interviews with several of the new couples, and we will be bringing you their stories and opinions on the matter over the coming days (see below for matches and interview dates)._

_Minister of Magic Kingsley Shaklebolt & Holyhead Harpies Captain Gwenog Jones_  **(** _ **interview August 21)**_

_Auror Harry Potter, Narcissa Malfoy, and Ella Wright **(interview August 22)**_

_Hermione Granger, Potion Master Severus Snape, Lord Sirius Black and Lord Draco Malfoy **(interview August 23)**_

_Hogwarts Headmistress Minerva McGonagall and Healer Augustus Pye **(interview August 24)**_

_Herbologist Neville Longbottom and Hannah Abbott **(interview August 25).**_

_Minister Shacklebolt stressed the need to allow disclosed matches the right to their privacy, especially in their homes. According to the Minister, nearly 20 other individuals are already matched, but not willing to come forward for interviews at this time._

_Should any citizen of magical Britain wish to volunteer to cast for a match, without receiving a summons, they are encouraged to write to Isabella Malone in the Department of Records to schedule a casting time. The Ministry of Magic plans to begin summoning witches and wizards to cast the second week of September, and the Minister wishes to remind citizens of the strict penalties for those who refuse to cast._

_For couples wishing to test their current relationship using the magical matching provisions, please contact Head Healer Augustus Pye to schedule testing._

* * *

Hermione folded her copy of the Daily Prophet in front of her, the evening edition delivered to the household before going to press and out to the Wizarding World. A small sigh escaped her lips as she rubbed her temples with her fingertips. She sat quietly at the large oak table that took up the dining room in the new house now occupied by her and her soon-to-be husbands.

The tension was palpable, and Draco, Sirius, and Severus were not feeling particularly patient in waiting to hear what the paper had to say.

"Well?" Draco asked.

"It is very well written," Hermione responded. "Padma really only talked about Kings and his interview. It's a short article, no fluff really. But they've listed five of the magical matches, with the dates the interviews will be published."

"We should tighten up the wards tonight before this goes out. I presume we'll have about an hour. We'll need mail monitoring wards, repelling wards for unwanted visitors, alarm wards, the works," Severus said, "Sirius and I can work on that now."

"Right," Hermione whispered, head resting in her hands morosely.

"Hermione," Draco said gently, rising to stand behind her, his large hand rubbing the knots from her shoulders. "We knew this was coming."

"I know," she responded, lifting her eyes to look at the three men in turn, "I just... this past two months with you three have been better than I could have ever imagined. I know it's important to have our names out there as supporters of the legislation and creators of the spell but is it so bad to just want to keep living this nice and quiet life with you all?"

"This will pass, kitten," Sirius reassured her, "And we're all here together. The MInistry has given us all the next two months of work and I propose we spend that time right here in our new home, continuing to get to know each other, planning one hell of a wedding, and you know, all of you falling madly in love with me!"

"Ha!" Severus barked out a laugh, "Keep dreaming, Black. Lucky for you, you only have to win over Hermione. I assure you I don't like shedding mutts."

The joking brought a smile to Hermione's face, a small blush creeping up her cheeks as she thought to herself about how she knew she'd have absolutely no problem at all loving each of these men, and although only Draco and Severus were matched to each other, she knew the three of them would be very close.

"What should Hermione and I do while you're working on the wards?" Draco asked.

"Padma will be here tomorrow for our interview," Hermione said, "I think we should prepare some notes on the things we want to say in regards to our matching, our relationships, how our friendships and romances are developing..."

"Ah kitten, I knew you wanted to romance me!" Sirius exclaimed.

"Shut it, Sirius!" Hermione scolded him, "You all must already know I absolutely adore each one of you as friends and romantic partners anyway."

The three men immediately fell silent, joking set aside for the seriousness of this moment.

"Hermione," Draco said softly, squeezing her shoulder, "We know. And I think I can speak for all of us when I say we are completely enthralled with you, as well."

Hermione smiled, tears glistening in her eyes as she stood and wrapped her arms tightly around Draco's waist. "Thank you," she whispered softly, before turning to place herself in Sirius' firm hold, his goatee tickling her forehead as he rested his chin against her. "You've all made me so happy."

Leaving Sirius' arms for the strong comfort of Severus, Hermione closed her eyes, her head pressed against his chest, listening to his heartbeat thrumming. He squeezed her gently, before prying her out of his arms and placing a kiss on her forehead.

"We'll do the wards. You do the know-it-all thing," he said with a smile, "And figure out what parts of the house we should tour with her, as well."


End file.
